The Emperor's Bodyguard
by Venjess
Summary: Ling has finally achieved his goal and become emperor, but now a whole new problem presents itself when Ling is kidnapped. With the help of Al and Mei, Lan Fan has to find her lord and get him back, before the rest of the empire realises what has happened. But when betrayal is the root of the problem, how can she know who to trust? Full summary inside...
1. Missing

**Summary: **Ling has finally achieved his goal and become emperor, but now a whole new problem presents itself when Ling is kidnapped. With the help of Al and Mei, Lan Fan has to find her lord and get him back, before the rest of the empire realises what has happened. But when betrayal is the root of the problem, how can she know who to trust? Of course, the whole thing becomes even more of a challenge when feelings come out into the open.

And wow, an actually good sounding summary, I am so proud

**Okay, wow... um... this was actually a rather long chapter... for the final section but I just had to sort of... summarise.**

**Um... I don't think this should end up with too many chapters... I guess I'll just have to see how it works out.**

**I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, though the OCs (eg. Ono, the Shii clan) are mine, just... made off the top of my head and... heehee... I own people...**

**Ling: Wow... that's just a little weird *laughs***

**Oh shush, you can't talk... you're starving in the gardens...**

**Ling: *frowns* when do I get to eat then...?**

**We- hey, I just had an idea- this is a spoiler right here so don't keep reading if you haven't finished FMAB or whatever but- don't you think that Ling could have been Gluttony if he didn't become Greed? heehee**

**Ling: I'm fairly certain I should be offended**

**Lan Fan: *glares* don't insult the Young Lord**

**Fufu...**

**Anyway, I just realised, this kinda has spoilers for the ending of FMAB regarding Ling, Lan Fan, Fuu, Al, Mei... um... let's just say everyone.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter One: Missing**

"That new Emperor is a fool! Our very own Ono would have been a much better ruler. Simply because this _Ling Yao_ found a philosopher's stone! Pah! I bet he only came across it by accident anyway!"

"Well… if you really feel that way, perhaps you'd be happy to help the rest of us out. We came up with a plan that'll make our clan the most powerful of all of them. Ono will be emperor for many centuries to come, and we shall be respected, as is our right!"

"Then… what's the plan?"

"Well…"

* * *

"My Lord? My Lord, where have you gotten to?" Lan Fan felt close to tears, the emperor- Ling- had been missing for a half a day and she couldn't find him anywhere. _'He's probably collapsed somewhere again…_' she was worried, but she also a little irritated, _'he's emperor now! He shouldn't be acting like this anymore… though… I suppose… if he acted any different, he wouldn't be Ling… and I wouldn't like him to be anyone else._' She checked another room, "but I'm his bodyguard and he makes my job so difficult! He probably doesn't even care!" She sighed, "no, he probably would if he thought he as troubling me a lot," _'that's one of the reasons I admire him so much…'_ Lan Fan sighed again, _'honestly, he's the only one who can make me feel so indecisive like this!_' she thought to herself exhaustedly before deciding to try the kitchen again.

About half an hour later, Lan Fan decided she would be able to find Ling quicker if she got help. That being said, she couldn't ask just anyone. Resolutely she headed to Mei's room, _'if Mei and Al helped me, I'd be sure to find him quicker_', normally, Lan Fan would hate the idea of asking someone for help- not to mention, she would feel guilty about interrupting Al and Mei's lesson on alkahestry- but, in truth, now that Ling was emperor, she would have to worry about his safety even more. And the time he's been gone for was no small thing.

The country of Xing is composed of fifty hereditary clans, from each clan; the emperor marries the daughter of the chief and has her bear him an heir. Those born compete in order to become the next emperor; Ling discovered a philosopher's stone in Amestris, this gave him the needed boost to gain the place of emperor as the previous emperor's health failed him. However, because of this, certain other clans- especially the Shii clan and the emperor's son Ono, who had, until Ling's return been the favourite for becoming the next emperor- resented Ling for it, feeling bitter over the loss, though they all accepted it to some degree.

Lan Fan felt that some of the clans might attempt something, in the early years of Ling's rule, while loyalty is still rocky, so that they may take the place of power instead. As his bodyguard, she absolutely couldn't let that happen, Lan Fan paused, _'no… that isn't it, even if I wasn't assigned his bodyguard, I'd still want to protect him'_.

"Lan Fan… has Ling gone missing again?" Lan Fan paused in her musings, looking up to see Alphonse Elric and Mei Chang looking at her, though Al was smiling gently, Mei's expression was better described as evil, "I knew it, she's completely in love with him." Lan Fan heard Mei mutter to herself. A slight blush formed on her cheeks, "I'm not in love with the Lord, it is my duty to protect him, that is all." Mei gave Lan Fan a look that stated she clearly didn't believe her words, _'it's true though, I admire the Young Lord, and I suppose I do… care for him to some extent, but it __**isn't**__ love! Definitely not.'_

She sighed, "I have no wish to bother your studies, but if you would aid me in my search for my lord, I would appreciate it, he has been missing since morning and I'm worried that he might have collapsed again." Al laughed, "of course, if he's been without food that long, chances are he _has_ collapsed," Mei sighed, crossing her arms, "honestly, what kind of emperor is this irresponsible?" she wondered aloud, however she spoke fondly, so Lan Fan didn't take offense on behalf of him, rather, she found herself silently agreeing with the young Xingese girl.

Mei smiled, "well then, we'd better get looking for him, right away!" Al smiled, nodding his agreement, before Mei added, "then we can right back to your studies," Al smile dimmed, before he jumped to his feet, "but Mei, we've rarely had any breaks from this as it is, I can only hold so much new knowledge in my head before it explodes!" Mei frowned, "your head isn't going to explode, besides, we're having a break right now, to look for Ling!" Al sighed and Lan Fan could tell he had realised he wasn't going to win this fight, _'they're like a married couple'_ she thought to herself distractedly.

Mei walked out of the room, "let's go look for Ling then! The sooner we find him the sooner I can get back to teaching you Alphonse!" Al sighed, before nodding, "yeah, Mei, it'll be great."

Lan Fan turned to Al, "she's a bit different when it comes to teaching alkahestry," Al nodded, "yeah, but… to be honest, I don't really mind, I like how she gets so serious about things. And I am genuinely enjoying the lessons, I've learning so much about Xingese alkahestry, Mei is really an amazing teacher." Al smiled happily, and Lan Fan swore she could hear wedding bells, '_no matter how I look at it, those two are very fond of each other, to say the least._' She thought to herself, smiling softly.

"Well, let's go look for Ling then."

Lan Fan nodded, "yeah."

* * *

"Yes, we've managed to get in!"

"Don't talk so loudly, you fool, there's no point sneaking in like this if we get caught!" The man who had been reprimanded gulped, then nodded quickly, "my apologies," he whispered.

Looking around they cautiously began to move forward, "we need to find the emperor and get out of here!" one of them whispered, "I know, as we discussed, we'll split up and check the different places our informant told us we might find him. Make sure you aren't spotted, look out for that bodyguard of his; she can sense the presence of people. Meet back here again in half an hour, if someone is here; stay back until they're gone. Everyone understand?"

They all nodded affirmatively before splitting into groups of five; there was a sense of tension in the air. All present knew that the emperor had the ability to sense the presence of people, just like his bodyguard, and both were very capable in fighting.

It was a tricky task they had ahead of them, and they had not had much in the way to prepare for it. Rather, they had been told to improvise, and they were nervous about whether or not this plan would succeed.

* * *

A grumble could be heard from between the trees, and a quiet, pained mutter of, "food…"

* * *

Lan Fan sighed, "this place is far too large, I've been looking for him for almost the whole day now, and I obviously haven't come anywhere close to where he is, I haven't been able to detect his chi yet."

* * *

Al looked around, "it would be a lot easier if I knew how to do that thing Lan Fan and Ling mentioned, I could probably find him quicker if I could detect his chi, I still haven't gotten a chance to learn that yet," he sighed, "I'm still stuck on that stuff about the 'dragon's pulse'," he heard a sound behind him and turned to see someone disappear behind a corner. Curiosity sparked, Al moved toward the corner, upon reaching it, he paused for a moment before jumping around the corner, ready to catch whoever had been hiding behind it.

No one was there.

He frowned in confusion, "oh, okay then," and turned to look for Ling once more.

* * *

The man collapsed against the wall, turning to his comrade he gasped, "that was too close," the other frowned replying harshly, "well, if you weren't so slow it wouldn't have been!" Turning, he saw the other three heading into the gardens, grabbing onto the other's arm, he ran after them, dragging his companion behind him.

* * *

Mei frowned, "where have you got to Ling?" she wondered aloud, _'I wanna teach Alphonse some more about alkahestry,'_ she thought to herself, feeling childishly like pouting. She sighed, _'actually, it's more like I wanna spend more time with Alphonse'_ she frowned at that thought, before shrugging and poking her head into another door to look around.

While looking around in the room, Mei heard movement outside, turning quickly; she focused on the door, as the sound got closer. Mei remembered a time when she had been a child; she had been in her room, playing with Xiao-Mei, when she had heard voices outside. Someone had come into her room and grabbed at her, acting instinctively she had run away, not able to perform much alkahestry yet. He had chased her and in the end, nearly caught up to her, before Mei's uncle arrived on the scene and subdued the man. It seemed, he had been from a rival clan, hoping to eliminate some of the competition, though the plan had been sloppily executed.

Mei had been young at that time, and it had scared her to no end.

As memories of that time flashed through her mind, the sounds got closer and her fear grew, then Xiao-Mei nudged at her cheek with her nose. Snapping out of it, Mei took a deep breath, _'things are different now, what are you doing Mei? Getting so worked up over a memory, whoever it is, you can handle them, easy!'_ that decided, Mei balanced herself, stepping into an attack position, ready for whoever came through the door.

She stiffened as the door opened, and prepared herself to attack, when Al stepped through cautiously, he started when he saw Mei, "Oh, Mei," he smiled, "sorry, I didn't realise you were in here." He laughed sheepishly and Mei felt herself relax instantly, only Al could calm her down so quickly like this.

Without another word, she walked forward and hugged him, burying her face in his chest, "M-Mei?" Al stuttered, blushing slightly, Mei didn't respond, simply tightening her grip on him. After a few moments, Al smiled gently, then he wrapped his arms around Mei, hugging her back tightly.

* * *

They heard him before they saw him, rather, the group heard his _stomach_. The five of them moved through the bushes and saw the emperor lying prone on the grass floor, groaning, "food." One of them bent down and prodded the teenager cautiously, as though expecting him to leap up and bite it off. Another nudged the man beside him, whispering, "he's even more useless than we thought." He started laughing, the one next to him did as well, and soon, all five of them were struggling to hold in their chuckles. At that moment one of them flew back in a spray of blood, hitting a tree, he slid down and started coughing, clutching at his front. When the other's turned to help him, he waved them off, "it's only a shallow wound."

"Oh? What a shame, I guess my hunger's affected my fighting." They all turned at the sound of the voice, the emperor, Ling of the Yao clan now stood proudly and determinedly, he sword unsheathed and held loosely in one hand, already red with blood.

Despite the shock of the sudden change, it was a sight to behold.

However, these men, had all trained in fighting, just as the emperor had. His bodyguards were nowhere to be seen and their advantage was added to when another group of theirs stumbled across the conflict and joined in.

Ling was knocked unconscious, his sword taken from him, almost all of them had been caught by the man's blade, one had been killed. But the emperor had been subdued, and the plan could commence.

Unbeknownst to them, a pair of eyes had been watching, and during the fight, the owner of those eyes had run off in search of Lan Fan.

* * *

**I don't know how well I got their characters but... I did my best.**

**I hope this sounds interesting to you guys!**

**And... yeah... it's kinda obvious who I ship F3**

**Al: *tilts head cutely* who do you ship?**

**Well... one of them is you and Mei**

**Al: *blushes***

**Mei: Yay! Does that mean we're going to be a ****_thing_**** in this?**

**Meh... who knows *tries to smile mysteriously* *ends up looking like I'm in pain instead***

**But seriously, I might have you guys happen, or I might just continue to hint really obviously at the two of you, like what happens in the actual anime and manga and stuff, because yes, it is hinted ****_very_**** heavily in that anime and manga**

**Review! Let me know if you think this idea is any good!**

**And wow, I've uploaded a lot today, on Christmas too! Like... wut.**


	2. Tricks And Escapes

**Okay, finally uploading for this story, I've been wanting to do more for it ever since I uploaded the first chapter, but I had all these other fanfics I ha to work on to... heh... uh... so yeah, sorry to anyone who has been waiting for my next chapter on this.**

**Ling: Because of you, I've been unconscious for ages now... and I'm still ****_so_**** hungry.**

**Well... sorry and all but... I'm uploading now, and you're unconscious so... be quiet!**

**Lan Fan: Don't order around my Lord, *glares***

**I don't own FMAB, but their are a few OCs in this story (as I'm sure you would have realised) that do belong to me**

* * *

**Chapter Two: Tricks And Escapes**

Lan Fan leaned against the wall, closing her eyes and sighing, _'where has he __**gone**__ to?'_ she wondered to herself exhaustedly, _'who would've thought it would be possible for one person to be __**so**__ difficult to find?'_ She couldn't help but half wonder if the emperor was avoiding her on purpose, even though he _promised_ not to do that to her anymore.

She sensed someone heading her way and turned to see one of the gardeners rushing towards her, clearly distressed, Lan Fan swallowed the feeling of dread that welled in the pit of her stomach, "yes?" she asked, forcing herself to keep her voice level. The woman stopped, panic written clearly on her features, "the emperor! He- and there were just too many and- but I couldn't do anything, I didn't have a weapon but they- and he was- and they defeated him- oh but he fought really well but- I mean, he defeated a few and I thought he was going to win then more came and- I came to get you the second they knocked him out!" The woman wringed her hands, fretting anxiously.

"What happened exactly, who did this?" Lan Fan asked quickly, not even bothering to correct the small tremor in her voice. "I'm not sure who it was, they wore maroon and gold but there are two different clans with those colours! They didn't kill him but I think they would've gotten him out of the palace by now! Oh! Our kind, young Lord, he could be in such danger right now!" the woman wailed.

Lan Fan's mind raced, _'maroon and gold, there __**are**__ two clans with that colour, the Shii clan and the Xiao clan, the Shii clan is the most likely suspect for this act given their previous animosity about the Lord's becoming emperor, but I can't rule out the Xiao clan either. They wouldn't have been able to find their way around the palace too easily regardless of who they were, unless they had information from someone on the inside who was familiar with the palace's grounds!'_ She turned back to the woman who was pacing around the room now, occasionally letting out a small whimper, "I'll find the emperor, don't worry, in the meantime, make sure you tell no one of the situation, understand?" the woman nodded, taking in a few shuddery breaths, "of course, Miss."

Lan Fan turned and ran out of the room, _'I'll have to head out as soon as possible, and find out if anyone wearing maroon and gold has passed through the gates yet, maybe I can stop them even getting out of here if I'm quick enough!'_

Watching the Xingese bodyguard hurrying out the door, the old lady sighed forlornly, if one looked close enough, they could see a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

* * *

The men threw the tied up emperor hurriedly into the back of the flower cart, covering the man with plants and leaves until he was no longer visible to the eye, "we have to get out of here before someone realises what has happened," one of them said quietly, the others nodded, two of them hopped up onto the cart, provided to them by their inside man along with the brown woollen cloaks that they wrapped around themselves, taking off their outer shirts which were embroidered with their clans colours and turning them inside out. The others put on their cloaks and went on ahead, they would simply walk out, the two in the cart would have to most dangerous task, "I don't know why it was insisted that we were our uniform," one of them muttered, "wouldn't that make it more likely for people to see who we are?" the other shrugged, "Ono has a plan for everything, there was probably a reason for it," the first sighed, clearly not satisfied with the answer, but he didn't say anything more as he turned and encouraged the horses to move.

* * *

Lan Fan raced out to the guard who stood watching the main gates, calling out to the officer, the man sauntered down with an arrogant swagger that immediately irritated the raven, pushing that out of her mind she beckoned him to come close and whispered, "have any amount of men wearing maroon and gold uniforms of a different clan passed through, possibly with some mode of transport that could be used to conceal a body in," she added, remembering that they couldn't very well walk out of the gates with the emperor in sight.

The man stared at her for a few moments before raising an eyebrow conspiringly, "may I ask _whose_ body is being concealed?" he questioned, Lan Fan frowned at him, "there is no need for you to know, simply answer my question," the man scowled at the potentially juicy gossip being denied him before answering in a slightly sulky tone that no, no one with those colours had passed through the gates that day.

Lan Fan frowned, before realising that they were being watched, glancing quickly to her left she saw two men, cloaked, sitting in front of a flower cart. They were both staring at her with blank faces; she inspected them to see only dirty, dark trousers with a light brown, or possibly dark red shirt underneath the cloak. They weren't wearing the right colours, but something about them seemed suspicious, she was going to go over and inspect their cart- just in case- when the officer noticed the two men staring, "move along you, don't hold up the line," he growled, waving them through the gate and without a backwards glance they left.

Lan Fan frowned, _'I suppose I don't really have time for that anyway, I need to find the emperor.'_ She bid the officer farewell and requested that he keep a look out for men of those colours, the man nodded and turned to go back to his post at the gate.

Turning on her heel to leave Lan Fan paused and gazed back at the gate once more, she could just make out the men sitting in front of the flower cart before they vanished over a hill.

She shook her head and ran towards the smaller, less-frequently used gate, larger carts couldn't fit through it, but there was the chance that they would sneak the emperor out using a different tactic, with the belief that those gates _wouldn't_ be checked due to their inadequacy for their need.

* * *

Lan Fan arrived at the back gates five minutes later; once again, she called to the officer in charge of the men guarding the gates at that moment. After acknowledging the call, the man motioned to another of his guards, evidently indicating that for the brief moments that he wasn't able to, he was meant to take the roll of officer in his place.

Lan Fan appreciated that precaution, and appraised the man as he ran over, he was slightly taller than her, with the usual black hair and dark eyes of the Xingese, he had a scar on his left cheek that some would say marred his otherwise attractive appearance, to Lan Fan, it just showed experience. He didn't possess the arrogant swagger that the other officer had, however, he did nothing to suggest a lack of self-confidence, when he reached Lan Fan, he bowed slightly, respectfully, "ma'am," Lan Fan nodded, all in all, an able and trust-worthy guard, she decided.

She repeated the question she had asked the previous officer, "Have you or your men noticed any in the uniform of another clan, with the colours maroon or gold, with some kind of burden about the size of a full-grown man?"

The man considered the question before his eyes widened, "has the emperor been kidnapped by a rival clan?" Lan Fan started, glaring at him suspiciously, seeing the look he shook his head, "uh, sorry, it isn't my place to ask," ignoring him, she asked icily, "how is it that you came to that conclusion?" realising that his loyalty was being put into question, the man bristled, "you are the emperor's personal, exclusive guard, meaning you're only concerned with his affairs. You're looking for a person or persons of another clan that has passed through these gates with something the size of a human, that specific size, furthermore, a fully-grown _male_, suggesting that you had someone particular in mind. When you first came, you seemed to be rather concerned about something, since only things concerning the emperor concerns _you_…" he trailed off, shrugging helplessly as he tried to convey his deduction.

Lan Fan sighed, _'if you were observant enough, I suppose it is possible to come to that conclusion_ she grudgingly admitted to herself.

She nodded, looking back to the man who sharply stood to attention, she gave him a stern look, "please ensure that you keep your ideas to yourself, it wouldn't do to needlessly panic the people," he nodded emphatically, "now, about my initial question?" she continued, looking at him expectantly.

The man thought for a moment, then motioning politely for her to wait, he ran over to where the other guards were standing to attention, inspecting the people who walked in and out of the gate. After a moments' fervent conversation, the officer returned, "I did not see them," he began, "but several of my officers saw some men entering through the gates in the uniform described by yourself. They said they noted it because it particularly stood out among the usual users of the gate, since mostly; it _is_ only used by servants and the like. They didn't have any burden with them however," he paused for a moment, before adding carefully as though uncertain of Lan Fan's reaction, "they said that it looked to be the uniform of the Shii clan guards."

Lan Fan nodded, she had expected as much, "so they weren't seen leaving?" she asked him, he shook his head, "my apologies for not being any more use to you," she sighed, "you may go back to your post now, officer," he nodded gratefully and returned.

* * *

Lan Fan considered her knowledge, so it was definitely the Shii clan, that much had been confirmed, and they hadn't been noted exiting the gate, but she hadn't been able to sense the emperor's chi as she went around the palace, she glanced momentarily at the walls, _'it is possible to climb them, easy even for a well-trained guard, but with a dead-weight body as a burden, it would be a challenge, and they'd definitely make enough noise to attract the attention of anyone passing nearby, they wouldn't risk it.'_

The two cloaked men came once more to her mind and she frowned, something about the chi she had sensed from them, simply wouldn't let her forget them. She had been distracted though, not too focused on that, normally, she checks a person's chi on instinct, however her concern for the emperor when she had found out about his kidnapping, had been enough to put her out-of-sorts, and she had forgotten about it mostly.

With a start she realised what it was about those two men's chi that he made her pause, she had sensed a third person's chi coming from them, a decidedly familiar chi. Horrified she realised, _'of course they would have changed!'_ she clutched her head in dismay, they had taken the emperor from right under her nose!

* * *

"She was staring right at us, I was sure she knew what we were up to!" one of the men cried, heart clutching his chest in relief at their mistake, the other grinned, "she's a stupid woman who should never have been given the job of guarding the emperor, I bet it'll take her _ages_ before she realises who dun' it, and by then it'll be too late" there was a groan from the back of the cart and the two men turned towards the sound.

"He can't get out, can he?" the first asked nervously, remembering the man's skill with the blade and the price they had payed to subdue him, the other shook his head confidently, once again reassuring him, "he may be a better fighter than we believed, but he can't do anything when his hands and feet are bound, his mouth is gagged _and_ the guy's blinded, he's helpless!" The first smiled nervously, before nodding, "yeah."

He still jumped when another muffled groan sounded from the back of the cart.

* * *

**Hur hur... so someone's betrayed their emperor**

**And there's that second guard who's just a ****_bit_**** too perfect**

**And there's that gardener who seems to be acting conveniently susupicious**

**Hee hee**

**Mei: Why weren't we in this chapter? *pouts***

**Al: C-calm down, Mei, I'm sure there's a reason, right, Jessica?**

**Of course, I forgot to put you guys in**

**^.^**

**Al: ...**

**Mei: ...**

**XD**


	3. Fear And Darkness

**Okay! Here's another chapter! I wasn't sure whether or not I wanted to upload this yet, then I figured I probably should so...**

**I don't own FMAB**

**Ling: Hoho... that into was rather lacking, don't you think?**

**Oh hush, they don't read for my Author's Notes**

**Lan Fan: Weren't you saying the exact opposite in your Author's Notes for PKH2?**

**You... I... just... go rescue your stupid boyfriend**

* * *

**Chapter Three: Fear And Darkness**

Al could tell immediately that something was wrong when he, Mei and Xiao-Mei ran into Lan Fan to see the distressed expression on her face as she rushed to her rooms. He moved to call out to her but Mei beat him to it, running forward and grabbing hold of the girl, "what's wrong, Lan Fan?" the small girl asked, worry evident in her large, dark eyes.

Lan Fan paused and glanced at them before sighing, "The emperor has been… kidnapped," she stated matter-of-factly. Al stared at her in surprise, "Ling?" disbelief evident in his tone. His brows knitted in worry, who would kidnap Ling? He glance at the raven questioningly, Lan Fan noticed the question in his eyes, "I'm fairly certain it's the Shii clan," Mei was furious, "of _course_ it would be them! They just couldn't accept the fact that Ling was chosen to be emperor instead! Ono wouldn't make anywhere _near_ as good an emperor as Ling does!" Lan Fan didn't say anything but Al could tell by the expression on her face that she agreed with the girl whole-heartedly.

"Well, then," he began, "what are we going to do?" she started a bit at that, surprised, "…we?" she asked uncertainly, Mei rolled her eyes, "of _course_ we're going to help, Ling is our friend too, you know!" she looked at Lan Fan slightly accusingly, as though offended the girl had thought even for a second that they _wouldn't_ want to help.

Lan Fan hesitated for a moment, but seeing the determined expressions on the two's faces she sighed and nodded reluctantly, Mei smiled, "great, so what the plan?" The other girl paused at that, looking at them both before saying, "go to the Ono's home, find the Lord and get him back, preferably teach the man a lesson or two about what happens when he tries to harm my Lord." With those words she turned on her heel, heading to her room- no doubt to grab whatever equipment she would need.

Mei and Al stared after her in confounded disbelief, "ah! Lan Fan! Surely you need something a bit more… planned?" Al called out, running after her; he couldn't let her go off to try and get Ling back if she didn't know what she was going to do. He and Mei caught up to Lan Fan, "calm down, you can't just go storming in there," he told the girl, frantically trying to get her to understand. She looked at him and Al saw in that moment the fear and the worry and the guilt the girl was going through, "if you don't calm down and think clearly, you won't be any help to Ling when you find him," Lan Fan stared wide eyed at him before lowering her head and looking at the floor, "all I've ever wanted to do is protect him, I thought that if I could… I just… I wanted him to be okay… it was my… my duty to protect him, and now he's in trouble, how can I think clearly when I don't even know if he's been hurt? If he's… if he's alive?"

Al sighed, he could hear the love in the girl's voice, the guilt and the pain, and he knew nothing he said would ease that, he was silent as the girl calmed her emotions, "I can't make a detailed plan until I get there and see the situation for myself," he said finally, turning to meet first his eyes, then Mei's, "once I get there, I can figure out what to do."

Mei frowned, "you promise not to just go rushing in?" Lan Fan smiled slightly, shaking her head, "I won't, you have my word," Mei nodded at that, "all right, then, it isn't too far away, Ono's home, we should be able to get their before the day is through," Lan Fan nodded and Mei turned to Al, grabbing him by the hand and dragging him along with her, "come on, Al, we need to get a few things before we go," she turned and called back to the raven bodyguard, "make sure you don't leave without us, we only need five minutes!"

Al looked down and saw the girl's determined expression, he smiled, "we better hurry, Mei."

* * *

They procured horses to hurry the trip along- also in mind of the fact that the emperor might be harmed and unable to walk- and slipped out the back gate together, in order to be seen by the least amount of people possible, after that, they headed along one of the many routes towards the Shii clan's territory.

"What are we going to do if someone spots us?" Al asked after some time of silence, turning to Lan Fan in the seat of his saddle, Al hadn't ridden many horse and his skill left something to be desired, but he was able to stay in his seat. Most of the time.

Lan Fan turned at the question, considering it for a moment before shrugging and replying, "Nothing we say will convince them not to run to Ono, since I'm fairly certain most of the household would have to be involved in this. So we'll just have to deal with them," seeing Al's horrified expression she shook her head, "I won't _kill_ anyone unless I absolutely have to, and even then, I'll try not to unless I know the extent of their involvement in this plan."

The girl sighed, _'I really hope he's okay, that idiot, getting himself into all these trouble,'_ she bit her lip, looking up at the road ahead of her, "they would have gotten back to the Ono by now," she heard Mei mention soberly and turned to their girl in surprise, seeing her expression Mei pouted, "I'm not stupid, of course they'd change use of transport, in case you sent out a warning for people to watch out for them, and they'd definitely get something faster, if they chose horses and rode them flat out, they would be there by now," "And they'd want to get Ling back to Ono as soon as possible," Al finished, looking at the small, Xingese girl with respect, "you're amazing, Mei! I mean, I knew you were clever, but I wouldn't have thought of them changing transport at all!" he spoke enthusiastically and Lan Fan had to stifle her laughter as Mei began blushing and daydreaming, "oh! Alphonse!" she gushed and Al smiled, astonishingly ignorant to the full meaning of Mei's reaction.

* * *

Ling slowly dragged himself out of the dark regions of unconsciousness, as he became alert to his surroundings, he realised he was in a dark room chained up so tightly he could barely move. He forced his breathing to remain slow- in the hope that no one would realise he had woken- and tried to inconspicuously look for the door.

His stomach felt hollow and his arms ached from being tied up in the awkward position they were in for so long. He vaguely recalled the smell of flowers, and two men talking, though about what, he wasn't sure, he didn't recognise their voices either. Remembering the uniform the men who had kidnapped him had been wearing he realised, "don't tell me this is the Shii clan," he whispered to himself, realising with dread, that it must be.

"Ah! So you're awake, good," Ling started, looking up to see a man stride into the room, he silently cursed his slip-up, he might have been able to have more time to figure a way out of this situation if he had kept quiet a bit longer.

Accepting that he had just lost an opportunity he forced a smile, "hello, Ono, would you mind letting me out of these chains, I'm really, very hungry and these are quite the nuisance," he laughed, but Ono simply stared at him, arms crossed until he subsided with a sigh, "what is it you want?" Ling finally asked, looking up at the man with a raised eyebrow.

The answer was a shrug, then Ono began pacing the room idly, "not much really, dear brother of mine. Simply for you to tell me where you keep that philosopher's stone of yours, and if you would sign a will naming me the heir, I would appreciate it," he smiled then, but the smile didn't reach his cold, hard eyes. "So I do all this, then you kill me, am I right?" Ling asked matter-of-factly, Ono shrugged, "pretty much," "and if I don't, I get tortured?"

At that, Ono grinned, and this smile was genuine, though dreadfully morbid, as though the idea was pleasing to him, "actually, no," Ling started, staring at his older brother in disbelief, "then how are you planning on getting me to talk, surely you can't think that I would just tell you?" Ono sighed, "that would have been nice, it would have saved me and yourself a lot of trouble," a taunting smirk appeared on his face, "not to mention that pretty bodyguard of yours."

Ling froze, dread rising inside of him, "you're bluffing, you don't have her, I know you wouldn't," Ono merely turned and headed back to the door, "maybe I have her, maybe I will have her soon, who knows?" there was a brief moment of light, as the large man exited the room, then that light abruptly vanished. Ling was left in the dark.

He tried to push down the fear, he could handle being in danger himself, but- and he was aware of how foolish it was of him- the thought of Lan Fan being in danger, unable to protect herself, the idea had never even really struck him. When she did something dangerous, he would fear for her, but she'd always be fine, he had always trusted in her and her ability, and he had come to rely on her so much.

He clenched his hands into fists, the room was cold and the air felt dead and still, it gradually entered his body, causing him to shiver, suddenly, Ono's words came back to him, _'maybe I have her, and maybe I will have her soon,'_ his eyes widened. Lan Fan would always come after him if he was in trouble, he didn't even have to question that. And if he had worked out who had been his kidnappers before seeing Ono, just by seeing the men's uniforms, then Lan Fan would definitely be able to. She was one of the smartest people he knew, and there would have undoubtedly been someone who saw the uniform.

He gritted his teeth, wishing desperately that Lan Fan would stay away, whatever were to happen, he could handle it. So long as she was safe.

"Lan Fan."

* * *

Lan Fan turned at the scream, body tense and ready for fighting, she saw to her horror that Al was no longer in his saddle, panicked, she looked around, Mei was crying out Al's name and looking… down…?

Lan Fan frowned and leaned over in her saddle to see the teen lying on the ground with a dazed expression on his face, "A…Al?" she asked softly, concerned, at that, he focused and glanced up at her, smiling sheepishly and sitting up, rubbing the back of his head with a wince, "uh… I fell off, she started suddenly and I wasn't prepared."

By this time, Mei had gotten off her horse and run over to Al, "are you okay, Alphonse!" she cried, hugging him when she reached him, Al started, a light blush colouring his cheeks, "uh… I'm… I'm okay, Mei, really, it was just a small fall, no need to panic," Lan Fan noticed that the Xingese girl held onto him for a few moments before pulling away awkwardly, "uh… right."

Despite herself, and her inner panic, Lan Fan smiled slightly, those two were cute together, and she couldn't help but wonder if that was what it looked like to others when she was with… with Ling.

She started, gripping her horse's reins tighter, _'I did __**not**__ just think that,'_ she thought to herself, embarrassment causing her cheeks to heat up. She turned away from the other two as they got back on their horses, forcing the blush back under control.

She _wasn't_ blushing because she had been thinking about Li- the _emperor_; the ride had simply been a bit tiring.

She turned to see Al and Mei had once more gotten back on their horses, Mei checking to make sure Al was on properly, Lan Fan sighed, glad that their love could be so innocent and simple, wishing… well, she didn't know what she wished for. She had always been happy just to have the emperor, just to be by his side, protecting him; shouldn't she want someone to love?

_'Maybe you've already found someone you love,'_ a voice spoke up treacherously in her mind. She frowned and shook her head to clear it, "come on, you two, we got to get going, the longer we loiter here, the longer…" she passed, realising she shouldn't state that the emperor was missing out of the palace where anyone could hear and spread rumours, "the longer _Ling_ is forced to wait for us to… meet up with him," she blushed slightly as she spoke his name, something she had never really done before, even as children, growing up together. She straightened her back, pointedly ignoring the astonished looks the other two gave her.

Urging her horse to move forward again, she was stopped when a voice behind them spoke in an arrogant, cruel voice, "now you just stop right there and hop off your horses, we would like to have a little chat with you three."

* * *

**This probably isn't going to have too many chapters... uh... yeah... just... yeah**

**Mei: When are we gonna become canon?**

**Meh... sooner or later... or maybe never, I probably won't decide until I'm actually at that point so... yeah**

**Al: O-oh...**

**Oh I'm sorry Al, I know you really wanted me to confirm you and Mei being canon**

**Al: W-wha? *blushes* I... I... um... you- that... uh**

**Heehee, so, hope you guys liked this!**


	4. Realisations

**Oh my God guys, I am ****_sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooo_**** sorry I haven't updated this story for so long I just... I am sooooooo sorry.**

**To make it up to you all, this one has quite a bit of fluff... not the very beginning bit though, that isn't the fluffy romance. I suppose if you wanted action that's where you'll get it for this chapter... uh... yeah.**

**I raised that rating to T because the beginning is a bit violent (?) so I figured just to be safe I should.**

**Anyway, Ling and Al are being overprotective, Lan Fan's basically taking one step forward to steps back in regards to her awareness of her feelings and Mei just being Mei being adorable and in love with Al.**

**Oh, and Ling still hasn't had anything to eat.**

**Ling: You know I'm pretty sure I should be dead from starvation by now**

**Is the only thing you think about your stomach?**

**Ling: ...**

**Right... stupid question**

**Lan Fan: The young lady writer does not own FMAB**

**You know you don't have to be all formal like... oh whatever**

* * *

**Chapter Four: Realisations**

Lan Fan turned in her saddle to see a group of men, muscles bulging, dirty, unkempt hair and clothes, daggers and short swords held in hand, leering up at them. She sighed, '_bandits, why now of all times?'_ they gestured for her to get off her horse and she did so, crossing her arms, "um, sorry, but could you leave us alone?" Al asked, still seated unsteadily on his horse, that was when Mei spoke up, "yeah," she said indignantly, "we have important business to attend to and you're wasting our time!'  
Lan Fan inwardly sighed at the two's actions, their words wouldn't help, merely flame the bandits' temper, she discreetly grabbed hold of one of her kunai, holding it loosely in her hand behind her back where the men wouldn't see it. She didn't want to waste time in a fight, but it looked like she had no choice, at least, on the bright side, she _was_ still helping the emperor in dealing with these bandits. There had been a large amount of robberies on the roads these days, and her Lord had been pained to hear of his subjects' losses, the fact that he was so determined to help his people was one of the reasons why Lan Fan had always been so honoured to serve him. If she dealt with these men, there would be less robberies on the road. Not a significant amount, but there would still be less.

She quickly examined them, there were seven, she couldn't detect the chi of any more hiding in the bushes, they were clearly strong, but their bulky size suggested that they would be rather slow on their feet. The inexperienced way they held their weapons showed that they had little to no experience with a blade, they would have been better off not using them. The weapons would merely slow them down.

Lan Fan nodded slightly to herself when she finished her analysis, checking the positions of Al and Mei to make sure she wouldn't accidentally harm one of them, she leapt at the men.

They hadn't seen it coming, one moment she was there, the next she wasn't, she was a bodyguard for the emperor for a reason after all. She snuck up behind one and sliced the wrist holding his weapon, with a yelp he let it go and stumbled forward, clutching his now bleeding hand, she slipped away and crept up behind another, slicing the tendons in the back of his knees, causing him to fall to the ground with a cry. She sensed one coming up behind her and snapped up a leg to kick him in the nose, sending him flying back, she threw a kunai at one of the men, it speared his left shoulder and he collapsed, clutching his arm and groaning in pain.

The man that had first spoken to them bellowed angrily, running towards Lan Fan who jumped over him, spinning in the air and pulling out another kunai from her belt, upon landing she threw at his unguarded back and he yelled again- this time in pain- before stumbling to the ground. She turned to the last two standing, who stood looking at her uncertainly, she reached into her belt and pulled out another kunai, the two bandits let out an unmanly yelp and a pig-like squeal before turning and sprinting away into the cover of the trees, throwing their weapons aside in their haste.

Lan Fan sighed in relief, tucking her kunai back into her weapons' belt, "what are we going to do about them?" she turned to find both Al and Mei standing behind her, she sighed, "they'll wake up sooner or later, but despite the urgency of this I… I suppose we had better fix them up a little," she frowned, "we'll bandage them then we'll be on our way," Mei hesitated, taking a step towards the nearest man uncertainly, "why don't I use my alkahestry?" she asked, Lan Fan shook her head, it was a tempting offer but, "they'd probably decide it was a dream, then they'd be back to robbing unsuspecting travellers all over again, the injuries can serve as a reminder that just because they have weapons, doesn't mean they're invincible, nor have the right to threaten or harm others with no provocation," she said coolly.

Mei glanced at Al who sighed before nodding his head to show that he understood the woman's logic. Without another word, she strode forward and knelt down beside the man whose wrists she had cut, understanding it to be a dangerous wound she began to bandage it, receiving no resistance from the man who had fallen unconscious due to blood loss.

* * *

Lan Fan had already bandaged one of the bandits, she turned to another and set to work, pointedly ignoring Al's gaze, with a sigh, he turned his attention back to the man he was helping- the man who had been hit in the back with one of Lan Fan's weapons- having pulled the kunai out with a grimace, he then commenced wiping away the blood.

Al recalled the raven's speed with which she had dealt with the bandits earlier and couldn't help but be impressed. He had seen examples of the girl's skill before, but had been too preoccupied with multiple issues to fully appreciate it.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mei checking on one of the men, he hadn't been harmed seriously, simply knocked back by Lan Fan, '_Mei's really amazing too,'_ Al thought to himself, '_I'm so lucky to have her teach me,'_ he smiled to himself. After a moment, Al turned back to tending to the bandit, reluctantly tearing his gaze from the small, Xingese girl. There was an odd feeling in his chest, filling him with peculiar warmth, he pondered on this for a moment, before deciding that this wasn't the place to wonder about such things.

He finished, and stood to help another, when he heard a groan from behind him, he turned to see the man who Mei had been kneeling next to, beginning to stir. He watched as Mei made soothing noises to try and calm him, as she reset his broken noise and tried to bandage it.

The man began to flail around; panicking at not knowing who this girl was, "get away!" he roared reaching out to knock her away from him only to find his hand stopped. Al was glaring at the man as he clutched his arm, stopping him from injuring Mei, when the man looked up at him he placed a protective arm around the girl, "I suggest you sit quietly and allow her to tend to you, considering she is helping you and that nose looks rather painful," he didn't the man go until he reluctantly nodded his agreement.

As Mei bent down to once more place a plaster on the man's nose, she quickly turned to Al and gave him a grateful smile, Al smiled back before turning and heading towards another one of the bandits.

He knelt down and stayed still for a moment, reflecting on his actions with surprise, normally, he wouldn't act like that, but for some reason, when he had seen the man start to get violent, he had felt a sense of protectiveness, he didn't want anyone to hurt Mei.

He bit his lip, '_I've always liked being with Mei, I've always thought she was the prettiest girl I knew, and when I had decided to try and learn alkahestry, I had decided to ask her to teach me immediately, I didn't even consider someone else.'_ He frowned, before sighing and beginning to pull up the bandit's trousers to get the cuts in the back of his knees.

'_There's a time and a place for everything, I'll figure out what my feelings are when we've rescued Ling'_ he glanced back at Mei one more time before turning his full attention back to his work.

He was fairly certain he already knew what feeling it was.

* * *

Mei still didn't understand, why had Al reacted the way he had? One could almost think he was being protective of her, she shook her head, '_he probably just didn't want me getting hurt, he'd do that for anyone,'_ she smiled slightly, that gentlemanly side of Al was something she absolutely adored about Al.

They had picked up the pace after finishing with the bandits, some of them had woken by the end so it had been perfectly safe to leave them there, Mei glanced at the Xingese guard up ahead, she was sitting stiffly on her horse, concern radiating from her entire being, Mei knew that she was second-guessing her decision to help the men. It was getting late now and the chances of them reaching the Shii clan home during sunlight were minimal. They'd have to perform the rescue in the dark.

Mei glanced at Al who was riding a bit behind her, he was clearly suffering from the increased speed, he had just managed to get a hang of riding a horse, now they were going at a much faster rate, Mei could see that it was all he could do to stay on.

She giggled quietly, in her mind, Al had always been heroic and amazing and she had absolutely loved him for how brave he had seemed, but this clumsy, awkward side of him was really very cute, and she loved him for that too.

The smile faded a little as she turned away from the struggling boy, she loved everything about Al, '_but I don't think he'll ever realise that.'_

* * *

Ling gazed at the wall idly, he knew he shouldn't be thinking it, given his current circumstances, he had more to worry about, but, '_I'm hungry and bored,'_ he thought to himself, letting his head slump forward a bit, he had managed to get his constraints looser, a little more time and he would hopefully be able to get them off. '_Then maybe I can get out of here, I don't think Lan Fan has come yet, if I can get out before she arrives, I don't have to worry about Ono hurting her,'_ he paused for a moment, surprised at the fierce wave of protectiveness and desperation that almost overwhelmed him, all he knew was that he _didn't want Lan Fan to get hurt_.

He sighed, "that's a bit of an unrealistic wish," he muttered to himself dismally, she was after all, his bodyguard, for as long as she was, she'd be putting herself in danger.

Ono hadn't come back, nor had he seen anyone else, he couldn't detect the chi of anyone close by, it was almost as though they had forgotten about it, '_I wish that was it,'_ he sighed, he didn't know Ono's plan, and unless he found out soon, Lan Fan could be in danger.

Surprised, he realised that he had only been thinking about Lan Fan, the danger she could be in, she was the main reason he was so desperate to escape. She had always struck him as strong, capable and reliable, secretly, he had always thought of her as amazing, the idea of her in danger, completely unprepared- he took a deep breath, '_Lan Fan is capable, she wouldn't rush into a situation without thinking it through thoroughly, she'll be fine, she knows how to handle herself, she doesn't need you to keep her safe,'_ his heart constricted at the thought, but he ignored it, his hunger was probably affecting the rest of him.

* * *

Lan Fan clutched the reins tighter, glancing back behind her at the two who had accompanied her, she could see that Al was struggling with his horse and Mei seemed to be upset about something, she frowned worriedly, should she really be bringing them into this when they're like this? Feeling her gaze on them, Al sat up straighter on his horse, trying to pretend he knew what he was doing and Mei gave a confident smile, acting as though nothing were wrong. Lan Fan shot the two a small smile before turning to look back ahead of her, '_I didn't really have a choice when it came down to it, they refused to let me go after the Young Lord by myself'_.

She felt a calm settle over her, stilling the agitated thoughts and feelings that had been affecting her ever since her Lord had first gone missing, she realised that she had returned to referring to him by his title instead of his name and she shook her head slightly at her folly, '_habits die hard… I probably shouldn't just start calling him by his name anyway I suppose, it's too… intimate and it's not like I have his permission, how shocked he would be if he knew,'_ she found herself flushing as she thought of her own forwardness, wondering where that had come from.

She lifted her chin determinedly, '_I'll work all that out when the Young Lord is safe'_ she decided, feeling her hope rise at the thought that that would be soon.

She felt something wet fall onto her face, reaching up to wipe it off, she saw it was water, with horror, she realised that the atmosphere was heavy like that of before a storm and her heart sank in dread as it had risen just moments earlier in hope.

It was going to rain.

* * *

**And so begins another saga of the readers endlessly waiting for my adding another chapter (I'm just joking, it's holidays soon so hopefully updates quicker again). But bear in mind guys, I have a bunch of other projects I'm working on to, if I get more reviews on this one than the others, I'm gonna give it more priority so... basically just shameless bribery for more reviews**

**Don't let me down guys!**

**Mei: I can't believe you didn't update for so long...**

**Al: Well she didn't have a lot of time on her hands, I suppose we can't really blame her.**

**THANK YOU Al! Just for that, AlMei is canon ;)**

**Al: W-wait, w-what? *blushes***

**Heehee**

**I'm joking, see, this is me here. Joking.**

**If you want the honest truth, I... well... can I just say something?**

**When you guys read the rest of this, please understand that its not that I hate Al or Ling, I love them, they're some of my favourite characters, I do... what I do to them because... I'm a sadistic evil person.**

**Not that I'm saying anything **_**bad's**_** going to happen to them or anything ;)**


	5. Foolish Mistakes

**Okay, this is the last chapter, that's it, the final one :)**

**Ling: How on earth do you manage to explain everything and get me freed in just this one chapter?**

**Who says you get free :D**

**Ling: ...**

**Ling: This isn't the last chapter, is it?**

**No of course not**

**Lan Fan: *glares* don't lie to the Young Lord**

**Oh Lord, we're back to this again**

**I don't own FMAB (I actually started writing I don't own Emperor's bodyguard, then i was like 'wait a second')**

* * *

**Chapter Five: Foolish Mistakes**

Al smiled as Xiao-Mei fell asleep on Mei's lap, the small girl pet the panda distractedly, sighing and looking out of the window at the scenery outside. The rain pelted down, thunder boomed and lightning lit up the sky like a beacon, none of them had particularly wanted to stop, but Al and Mei had both realised that to go on in this weather would be pointless, they would arrive at the Shii clan's base bedraggled, drenched and exhausted, in no condition to fight.

"I suppose the hope to get to Ling before the day was up was rather… optimistic," Al said at last, Mei nodded. Whoever had taken Ling, would have had fresh beasts to ride, they would have ridden them to the point of exhaustion, "we had probably been moving too slowly from the start," she said softly. She sighed and looked out of the window again, Ling was in trouble, and she wanted to help him, now, it was looking like they would be staying at the inn all night.

When it had first started to rain, they had been some way away from the village, by the time they had arrived, it had been late at night and they had been drenched, Lan Fan hadn't wanted to stop, but they couldn't rescue Ling in this condition, so in the end, they sought shelter in an inn. Lan Fan had gone out to check on the horses just recently, she had refused to speak to either Al or Mei, not even meeting their eye. Al sighed, _'we'll leave first thing in the morning and we'll go and save Ling,'_ he thought determinedly, it was the only thing they could do after all.

* * *

Lan Fan saddled up her horse as quietly as possible, luckily, the storm covered up any noise she might have made despite her caution, _'that's one use for this foul weather at least,'_ she thought grimly. The horses had been fed and had had a bit of a rest, it would have to do. Hurriedly, she moved on to the horse next to hers, the one Al had ridden, as she started to prepare it she sighed, silently apologising to Al for taking his horse.

It was a trick that some riders used, take two horses and have them travelling as fast as possible, riding on one until it tires, then swapping to the other, this method gave the horse a chance to rest a little, and ultimately meant less stops for the rider.

She led the two horses out of the stable, hushing them and placing a calming hand on the muzzle of one of them as it gave a nervous whinny and skittered back at the sound of the thunder. Lan Fan glanced over at the inn, it was a lit up like a beacon through the rain and the darkness, she sighed, _'sorry Mei, sorry Al, but I can't wait any longer, he's in trouble,'_ she pulled herself up onto the back of the horse and rode away.

* * *

Al sighed and stood up, "I think I'll go to bed, Mei," he said to the small Xingese girl who nodded, "I guess I will too," her gaze turned to the window again, "Lan Fan's still out there," she said softly, and Al sighed, "just leave her Mei, she's upset, I don't think she'll want to talk to either of us right now."

Mei nodded guiltily before frowning, "still, it's a bit out of character for her don't you think? Lan Fan has never struck me as the type to just accept something she isn't pleased with, at least, not if it means compromising Ling's safety," Al nodded, "yeah, I mean, I thought she would have argued more or…" he trailed off and the two looked at each other with horrified realisation.

The sky lit up once more as lightning flashed, followed soon after by the rumble of thunder, Al and Mei ignored it in favour of running towards the stables, attempting to cover the heads against some of the worst weather. Al stumbled in first and saw that two of their horses were indeed gone.

Lan Fan was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

Ling smiled in triumph as he released one of the chains on his wrist, his arm fell to the ground tiredly and he looked at it and winced, the skin was red and raw from the constant rubbing and struggling. Sighing, he leaned back against the wall, too exhausted to care about the unpleasant feeling of the cold, wetness of the stone behind his back seeping into his clothes, he was already shivering uncontrollably, it made no different to him.

A wave of lethargy overcame him and he was struck by the sudden to desire to simply sleep, he was tired and hungry and Lan Fan could come and save him, why did he need to bother? _"It would have saved me and yourself a lot of trouble, not to mention that pretty bodyguard of yours"_ Ling sat up once more, _"maybe I have her, maybe I will have her soon, who knows?"_ determined once more, he reached up to his still chained hand and began yanking at it with his free one, _'there's no way I'm letting that man get his hands on her,'_ he thought viciously.

He would protect Lan Fan no matter what.

* * *

Lan Fan placed her mask over her face as the property of the Shii clan came into view, her horse slowed down, giving a grateful snort as she leapt off its back, pulling loose the reins of the second horse that had been running behind. She led the two behind her, towards a set of trees, she had ridden through the night enduring the storm, and now, as dawn broke over the horizon, the rain had started to ease up, allowing the weak light of the sun to illuminate the landscape. Hurriedly, she tied the beasts up, wrapping the reins around the trunks of a tree and knotting them efficiently, checking to make sure that they wouldn't be easily seen, Lan Fan nodded, satisfied, before turning back towards main house of the Shii clan, that was where Ono would be.

Hopefully, so would the emperor.

She slipped in through the gates, the light rain, though less severe than the night's weather, still provided some cover as no one sensible would be found out in it. She moved through the courtyard unseen and entered through one of the back doors used only by servants, stepping into the warm atmosphere of the kitchen. Cooks gossiped as they kneaded dough, servant girls ran to and fro carrying trays and baskets of fruit, a young boy scraped ashes out of the fire, his face covered in soot. Lan Fan realised that they were preparing breakfast, though it was still the early hours of dawn, servants in most households _would_ be working at such times.

Lan Fan hid behind a crate of fruit, inspecting her easiest route through the kitchen, under the ceiling of the room spread beams and rafters, upon which cooking utensils and various seasonings hung. If she could get up there she could easily travel above those in the room and slip out the door without being seen, she almost smiled at the lack of challenge it posed. She leapt on top of the crate and pulled herself onto one of the beams before anyone looked her way, hurriedly, she began moving across, them, heading for the door.

"Did you hear about that man brought in last night?" Lan Fan froze, looking down towards the source of the voice to see two young serving girls cutting up fruits together. Lan Fan bent down to listen closer as one with rather pretty eyes turned to her companion, "no, what happened?" The other girl- who Lan Fan noticed had rather large nose- smiled condescendingly, "well, what do you think happened? He was unconscious, brought in slung over the shoulder of Gan who was acting as though he had kidnapped the emperor himself," she chuckled, shaking her head at the absurdity of such an idea, "Gan and Ming-Hua took him down the corridor to the holding room that's more separate from the rest of the main house, all of us servants have been given orders to stay away from there," Lan Fan stood, looking towards the door and frowning, she had seen a room that had seemed somewhat separate from the rest of the building, she was fairly certain she knew how to get there.

"So did you get a look at him?" the pretty eyed one asked eagerly, big nose leered, "well, he was rather attractive I must admit, let's just say that under different circumstances, I wouldn't say no to a bit of fun," Lan Fan wrinkled her nose in disgust, turning back for a moment to glare at the two girls who giggled until the head chef headed their way.

Putting them out of her mind, Lan Fan turned back towards the kitchen door, when the occupants of the room were distracted by the chef's loud yelling as he berated the two 'useless' servant girls, Lan Fan slipped down from the beam and out of the room

'_Please be okay, my Lord.'_

* * *

Al and Mei rode quickly on the horse, it sped across the country side and even though Al was almost falling off the saddle, he silently willed it to move faster. Who knew what kind of trouble Lan Fan and Ling could be in now? He had no idea what he would do when he got there, and he couldn't help but feel concerned about how he was going to get into Ono's home unseen. Mei's hands tightened around his waist and he smiled slightly at the reminder that he wasn't alone.

_'We can do this.'_

* * *

Lan Fan walked down the corridors, sticking to the shadows despite the fact that there was no one around to see her. It seemed the servant girl had been correct in her statement that all servants had been banned from the area; she hadn't seen a single person.

As she neared the end of the hall she sensed a familiar chi, that of someone she knew, she recognised it immediately, "Ling," she whispered, moving towards the door. It opened easily- it hadn't even been locked- and she stepped through to see Ling seated on the ground, legs crossed, one arm chained, the other free, looking at her with an unreadable expression. She almost laughed in relief when she saw he was unhurt; his eyes widened and he opened his mouth to say something when Lan Fan sensed the chi of multiple people coming up from behind her. She spun around to see soldiers running towards her, too many for her to deal with, she glanced back at Ling, his arm was still trapped, they couldn't escape.

She was frozen in shock, she didn't protest as two of the men came forward and tied her arms, beginning to search her clothes and remove her weapons. Silently she cursed her foolishness, of _course_ they would have known she would come, Al and Mei were right, she shouldn't have been so hasty, she shouldn't have been so impatient.

A man strode forwards, tall and intimidating he leered down at her, reaching forwards he pulled off her mask, the string broke with a snap, Lan Fan glared up at him unflinchingly, "my, aren't we late little bodyguard?" he asked in a mocking tone.

Lan Fan glared up at him, hatred boiling in her heart, before her, with a triumphant smile on his pig-like face, stood the first son of the late emperor, Ono.

* * *

Ling struggled against the chains, his wrist was stinging but he ignored it, he had a strange sense of urgency that he couldn't explain, and trembling hands grasped and fumbled at the cold metal, struggling to loosen it some more. He cursed as he tore some skin on a finger, pausing in his work to inspect it before reaching up once more. He sensed a familiar chi coming towards him and he paused, focusing before realising that he knew who it was.

Turning towards the door as it opened he stared at the masked figure who walked through, even with her face covered, he knew who it was and he knew that it wasn't good she was here. He sensed more people coming in their direction and his eyes widened, his mouth began to form her name in warning but she spun, already sensing the danger.

Ling could only watch as Lan Fan was forced to surrender, her face exposed and her arms bound. Ono turned towards him and leered, and Ling understood that they had lost, some other soldiers entered the room and grabbed him, holding him in a grip so tight he winced. Ono noticed that he had freed one arm and tutted condescendingly, his arms were once more chained and he was dragged over to where Ono stood with Lan Fan.

"This room is so dreary don't you think, little brother?" the man said with a smile, "how about we go to a room more befitting of an emperor and discuss plans for the future together?"

* * *

**Heehee... Ono is like the stereotypical bad guy :)**

**So like... yeah... we're getting somewhere, we maybe... half way through it now or something**

**Al: Surely it doesn't take that long to rescue Ling and Lan Fan?**

**Who says those chapters are full of rescuing Ling and Lan Fan**

**:D**

**Mei: What are you on about?**

**Nothing :)**

**Anyways... I kinda wanna try and finish this one, so I think I'll probably be working on this (hopefully) more than my other porjects**

**idk**

**I guess it'll depend on how many reviews I get (hint hint)**

**Well, anyway, I hope you guys liked it~**

**XD**


	6. Goodbyes

**Ok, I wasn't going to upload this for a bit longer, but Bec says I should so here you go**

**Ling: That introduction was really lacking**

**Hm... I suppose so**

**I'm doing a million other things though so cut me some slack**

**Lan Fan: I'm doing the disclaimer because there was opening for me to speak elsewhere; Jessica doesn't own FMAB**

**Enjoy**

* * *

**Chapter Six: Goodbyes**

Lan Fan sat on the cushioned seat uncomfortably; her hands clasped together, the chains hanging from them clinking slightly, a reminder that despite the friendly appearance, not everything was as it seemed. She glanced up at Ling who was currently covering a piece of bread with an olive and parsnip dip, "my, this is so much better than that dreary old room," he said cheerfully, turning to smile at his older brother, Ono. The piggish man returned the smile, "yes, quite, and once you've finished eating we can discuss-" "oh no, don't mention business during meals," the Xingese emperor interrupted, and Lan Fan sighed as Ono's smile turned to a glare, Ling was needlessly aggravating the man by interrupting him, and in the current situation, she wasn't sure that was the best thing to do.

But Ling had always been like that.

Lan Fan knew that the second the meal was done, Ono would start threatening, but right now, he was acting every bit the part of a hospitable host, and she knew why. It was a show of power, that he had the ability to give them comfort, or take it away, and he wouldn't hesitate to do it either. It was a demonstration that even though Ling was the emperor, here, Ono ruled, and that rule was undisputed.

Lan Fan looked around the room, there were several guards in the room, two stood behind her, two behind Ling, and one at each entry (two at the large door that led outside, apparently placed there so that 'their most esteemed emperor could have a window view'), they were alert and ready. Ono sat across from her, and she knew it would take little effort to leap across the table and grab him, even without a weapon, she could easily kill, and if she was able to subdue him, then maybe she could use him as a hostage to get her and the emperor out safely. But she disregarded the thought almost as soon as it came to her. These guards were trained like she had been, the second she moved they would see it and they would stop her, likewise, Ono would have received the same training as Ling had, with his obvious strength added into the equation, it was likely she wouldn't even be able to hold onto him.

There was nothing she could do.

She glanced once more to Ling and saw him looking at her, he gave her a small smile and she knew what that smile meant, that he trusted her, and that things would work out.

Lan Fan calmed a little and nodded slightly, there was nothing she could do.

_Yet._

* * *

Mei's arms were wrapped around Al's waist tightly, had the circumstances been different, she probably would have been squealing at the opportunity to ride a horse with Al, something about it seemed just so very romantic.

But as it was, the situation was hardly suitable.

They were speeding as fast as they could on the back of a horse, Al barely managing to control the beast (luckily he was a fairly quick learner), on their way to rescue Ling and Lan Fan.

There would be no romantic moments when they reached their destination, only fighting and danger and Mei knew that some of them might get hurt.

Mei tightened her grip around Al's waist, _'it'll be okay, if Al's with me, I know I'll be fine.'_

* * *

Ono couldn't help but feel satisfied as finally, the plates were cleared, his younger brother was still keeping up the façade of not caring, of not even minding the danger he and his guard were in. But he could see the tension in the boy's body, and the sharp glances he'd throw around the room, _'still searching for a way to escape little brother?'_ he thought to himself amusedly.

He knew that it didn't matter, what the two tried, they wouldn't be able to escape. In truth, he had been doubtful as to whether or not the plan would work, he wasn't particularly willing to risk his life in someone who had once been a rival, _'but I suppose his plan worked after all,'_ he thought, satisfied, _'and thanks to the extra muscle he provided for me, it's absolutely impossible for either of them to escape,'_ he felt like laughing, it was all turning out too perfectly.

Finally, the last servant girl left the room; Ono turned to his two 'guests' and gave them a morbid smile, "now then, there are a few things I would like to discuss with you, little brother."

* * *

"Come on girl," Al muttered, petting the horse's mane encouragingly as she panted and her flanks trembled. The sun had been up for some time and Al was certain that Lan Fan would have had to have arrived in the Shii clan's base by now, he couldn't help but hope that maybe they would meet up on the way with Lan Fan and Ling, that they had escaped without any incident.

But he knew it wouldn't be that easy.

And a cold dread that lay in the bottom of his stomach told him that he wouldn't have anything to look forward to when they arrived.

He didn't understand it, but for some reason, his mind went instantly to the owner of the two arms around him, Mei. She was more than capable, she could easily look after herself, she had proven that countless times, before and during the Promised Day, realistically, Lan Fan and Ling should be the ones he would worry about more, as they were the ones in imminent danger. And yet, he felt an awful terror for Mei, he didn't want to lose his friends and so of course he didn't want to lose Ling or Lan Fan, but he knew, that if something happened to Mei, it would be worse.

He wasn't sure he'd be able to handle it.

He tightened his grip on the reins, _'I'll protect her, no matter what.'_

* * *

Ling's heart hammered in his chest, he knew this was bound to happen, he had really only been putting off the inevitable, and now, Ono sat in front of him, legs crossed, smug grin on his face, "now then," he began, "there are a few things I would like to discuss with you, little brother."

Ling forced a smile, "really?" he asked cheerfully, "and what could that be?" he was pointlessly goading the man now, faking ignorance, but he wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of knowing how scared he honestly was. Not for himself, naturally, he wasn't happy about the situation he was in, but he wasn't frightened for himself. Rather, he was scared for the third person who sat at the table, the person who had come all the way to Ono's home to rescue home, but had consequently walked into a trap, the person who was in danger now because of him.

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, only to see that she wasn't even looking in his direction, opting instead to glare at their captor, her displeasure rolling off her in waves.

He turned back to Ono, looking away from Lan Fan with a sigh, he knew that she would be silently cursing herself for not considering a trap, he also knew that there had been no way for her to know what was going to happen, that she shouldn't blame herself for the situation, but nothing he could say would change her mind, even if he was able to get a chance to talk to her.

"So then," Ono drawled, "there are a few things I want from you, dear little brother of mine," Ling could basically _feel_ Lan Fan's fury at the disrespectful manner Ono was addressing him in. Keeping up the cheerful ignorant act he smiled, "oh? And what might they be?" It was pointless, he knew, but he couldn't help himself, the only thing he could do at the moment was stall for as long as possible, and just _hope_ that an opportunity would present itself.

But it seemed Ono had no intention of letting him do that, before either of them could react, he nodded his head at the two guards behind Lan Fan and they grabbed her, Ling started forward only to be stopped by the two guards who stood behind him, Lan Fan stopped struggling quickly upon the realisation that even if she managed to escape the guard's grasp, there were several other trained guards in the room that could easily stop her. "You're always so keen to help your people," the man sneered, "well, the way I saw it, surely you'd want to help one of your most _loyal_ subjects," Ling clenched his hands into fists, "and what do you suggest by that?" he asked, the mask of ignorance had fallen the moment Lan Fan had been grabbed.

Ono saw this and smiled, "well, I'm sure it would be a great help to this pretty young girl if you were to tell me just where you hid the Philosopher's Stone, and if you would sign a will, declaring me your heir, I'm sure she would be most grateful, after all, if you were to do this, I might just decide to let her leave here alive," Ling cursed quietly, the moment he did this, Ono would undoubtedly kill him, and he had no guarantee that he really _would_ allow Lan Fan to go.

"What are you doing?" Ling turned to Lan Fan in surprise, "don't even consider it my Lord, I live to serve you, it would be an honour to die in order to assist you," Ling's gaze softened, "Lan Fan," he sighed, shaking his head slowly there was absolutely no way he'd just let her get killed. He had no way of knowing for certain if Ono _would_ allow her to leave, but it was a chance.

So he'd take it.

"The Philosopher's Stone is kept in a small compartment in the back of the throne, its hidden there," Ono sneered, "and is that the honest truth?" he stood up and walked over to the two guards holding onto Lan Fan, pulling an ornate dagger out of his sleeve, "you realise little brother, that we'll hold onto her until that statement has been verified, and if it turns out to be a lie…" he trailed off, the implications clear in the look he gave him. Ling gritted his teeth and nodded, "I realised that," he muttered, "it's the truth," Ono gave a smug nod before turning to one of his other guards.

The man came forward holding a piece of parchment; Ono took it from him and placed it in front of Ling, "what's this," the emperor asked, frowning. The smile on Ono's face had yet to leave, "it's the final will of our dear, beloved emperor, it's already been written up for you," he bared his teeth in a sneer, "isn't it nice of me to arrange it all for you?" A pen was offered and Ling reluctantly took it, he glanced at Lan Fan then sighed, pen hovering over the parchment.

"No my Lord, please, don't allow them to coerce you into doing this, if you sign that they'll-" Lan Fan was cut off as Ono angrily stood and grabbed hold of her face, pulling her towards him. Once more, Ling rose to help only to be pulled back by the guards on either side of him. Lan Fan tried to pull away from Ono's grip, but the man was relentless, "one would wonder why you are so intent on serving your Lord," he whispered to her, voice dripping with malice, "you certainly show more loyalty than any normal servant, could it be possible that your feelings go beyond that of servitude and responsibility," Lan Fan gasped and tried to shake her head at what he was implying but he didn't allow her. After a moment of gazing intently at her, Lan Fan's eyes slid away from him to the ground and he smirked, releasing her and turning back to his main interest.

"So little brother, where were we? Ah, I remember now, you were about to proclaim me your heir should anything… _unfortunate_ befall you," Ling flinched, before bowing his head in defeat. Reaching forward, he signed the parchment without any more delay, there was no point, there would be no miracle, no saving grace, he turned his gaze to Lan Fan, it seemed, after everything the two had been through, their story ended here.

Ono reached forward and took the parchment, rolling it up and tucking it into a sleeve he once more held out the ornate dagger, "well brother, it seems that our conversation ends here, it was such a _pleasure_ to talk with the _emperor_, I won't be seeing you again anytime soon," and with those words the two guards stepped forward preventing him from moving and Ono raised the dagger.

But Ling wasn't looking at him, his gaze was fixed slowly on Lan Fan's face, tears had started to run down her cheeks, tears of frustration at her own uselessness, and fear and sadness for Ling. He smiled slightly, he had never known anyone more beautiful or perfect, he wanted to comfort her, to hold her, but his arms were held tightly by the two guards. Too strong for him to escape.

All he could do was hope that Ono would keep his promise and let her go, and that he wouldn't be a cruel leader to his people.

The dagger came down.

* * *

**I don't even know what I was doing for half of this. Goodbye Ling, you were an amazing character.**

**It looks like he realised his love for Lan Fan too late**

**Oh well...**

**Al: Wait... what, what happened**

**Mei: Something bad happened didn't it?**

**Al: But we were on our way! Surely we're going to turn up in the nick of time to save the day! Why are you killing him! That's not meant to happen!**

**Oh please, it'd be too cliche if I did that**

**Anyway, hope you liked it :)**


	7. Escape

**Who doesn't like cliches, I mean, they are cliches for a reason, so no one is allowed to be annoyed with my blatant overuse of them in this chapter :3**

**I have this ridiculous desire to type my author's notes using a quirk, but I am feeling considerate so I won't... unless I decide to just use Karkat's quirk? I don't think people would be able to misread that or anything**

**AFTER ALL HE TALKS IN CAPITALS LIKE THIS**

**Ling: Why are you shouting?**

**IT'S A THING THAT I AM DOING THAT I AM GOing to stop doing now because it's silly**

**Gosh, I should be doing my Math's assignment, what am I doing uploading chapters**

**Lan Fan: Because you have officially finished Emperor's Bodyguard**

**Ling: And you decided to upload a chapter every Sunday**

**Lan Fan: And when you've finished with Emperor's Bodyguard, you still want to keep the trend of uploading a chapter of ****_something_**** every Sunday**

**Uh... right**

**I... right... um yeah, guys, that's a thing now, there's like ten chapters in total for the entire fanfic, and I'll be uploading one every Sunday, sorry for not doing a chapter spam or anything but... yeah**

**So, I don't own FMAB**

**And I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

**Chapter Seven: Escape**

Ling stared at the dagger, his eyes crossed as he tried to see its point, stopped moments away from him. His eyes moved up the dagger to the person holding it, now wrapped tightly in metal and concrete that had risen from the ground and trapped him; no matter how much he struggled, he couldn't move. The guards barely had a chance to react, starting forward uncertainly when there was another flash of blue lightening and the ground rose up and wrapped around the poor men.

Ling turned to the door that led outside, the glass had been smashed open and standing there, chest heaving, hands placed on the ground was Al. Ling realised that Al and Mei must have come after Lan Fan when she left, he moved to stand, slipping around Ono who was struggling and swearing violently, suddenly he was stopped by Mei who had launched herself at him and wrapped her arms around the emperor, hugging him with relief. Lan Fan pulled herself free from the guards as they cursed and struggled to release themselves, she ran forward towards the emperor, relief written clearly over her face. Ling turned to her, but before anything could be said, Al ran over also, "are you both alright?" he asked, Ling grinned and nodded, and Lan Fan followed suit with a grateful smile.

Mei grabbed hold of Ling's sleeve and started tugging him towards the entrance, "we should get out of here," she said, "quickly, before more guards-" she was cut off by the sound of running feet. They turned back towards the second door that led into the main house and saw dozens of guards pouring in through it. Ling sighed, "You were saying?" he said, tone light as he tried to conceal a sigh at the realisation that the danger was not yet over.

Lan Fan wasted no time lamenting; she quickly leapt forward, snatching a dagger from the belt of one of the imprisoned guards and held to the neck of the trapped Ono threateningly, "let us go if you value his safety," she ordered, grip on her weapon tight and determined, she had failed the emperor once before and compromised his safety, she wouldn't allow it to happen again.

The guards hesitated then moved forward a few more steps; Ling frowned, uncomfortable without any form of weapon, he reached towards the nearest captured guard and freed him from his sword. He turned once more to the guards, unable to shake a peculiar feeling, something about the men confronting them seemed out of place, but right now, he couldn't quite work out what it was. A glance at Lan Fan, then Mei, showed that the other two had noticed the difference also, while Al didn't seem to notice anything.

He started backing away, opening his mouth to give the order to run, they should still be able to slip out of the entry leading outside, and Al, Mei and Lan Fan must have arrived on horses, if they moved suddenly, they might be able to get out without any injury.

One of the men strode forwards, Ling tensed up, sensing the others do the same, but the guard stopped before he reached them, he gave an odd smile and suddenly, before any of them could react, a dagger was thrown.

A body jerked back slightly with a startled grunt.

Then stopped moving.

Ling turned in shock towards Lan Fan and Ono, to see the raven girl staring in surprise at the body that had now ceased struggling to escape his confinement.

Ono was dead.

He had been killed by one of his own guards.

Ling turned slowly towards the guards once more, shocked at what had just transpired; the sense of wrongness had increased. He knew that he was missing something, and he had a feeling that it was something obvious.

But his mind wasn't making the connection.

And he didn't have any time to work it out either, because it was at that point that the guard who had killed his master- the one who had thrown the dagger at Ono- gave an order to the rest of the men behind him, "don't let them leave here alive."

* * *

Even before the fighting had started, Mei could see that they had no chance of winning, there were too many, they'd easily be overwhelmed, so it wasn't so much a fight for her and the others as it was an attempted retreat. Mei dodged multiple attacks, ducking and weaving away from the swords and daggers that sliced at her, taking down a few, but mostly on the defensive. Despite the large numbers- or maybe because of them- there was almost something coordinated in the manner in which the guards fought, and it was this particular quality that was making it impossible to fight back.

The broken door was right behind her, she glanced behind for a moment to outside, once they got out, it wouldn't be too far to where the horses were, there was the danger of the guards throwing their weapons but there was quite a fair amount of cover for them.

They might be able to make it.

She felt a burning pain in her shoulder and cried out, stumbling backwards and clutching her arm, the sleeve quickly staining red, and dripping with blood, she had lost concentration for a second, but it had been enough.

As Mei grimaced at the pain, one of the men loomed up in front of her, his dagger now stained red showing that he had been the one to cut her, Mei leaped back but stumbled on the doorframe, already dizzy from the rapid blood loss, she didn't react quickly enough and fell to the ground, hitting her head, hard.

The pain in her arm increased when she fell, and as her vision started to blacken she realised just how bad a wound it was, the last thing she saw was the guard heading towards her, dagger raised for a final strike.

* * *

Al couldn't help but feel everything was getting completely out of hand, using his alchemy to stop some of the guards, dodging strikes and sudden attacks, he knew it couldn't go on like this for much longer, it wouldn't be long before the only escape open to them- the broken glass door leading to the outside- was blocked off too, when that happened, they would have no chance.

He stepped back, leaping over the door frame so he wouldn't trip- in a situation like this, something like losing one's balance, even for a moment, wouldn't have good results- and taking care not to slip on the wet, muddy grass.

If they could just get to their horses, they'd be okay, the guards didn't know they had some nearby, to give chase, they would have to turn back and secure their own rides, in the time they did that, Al and the rest would be well on their way, even with their tired horses, there would be no chance of catching up to them.

They could still escape.

Then he heard a cry of pain that froze his heart.

* * *

Ling turned towards the shout, recognising the voice to be Mei's, panicked, he looked for his little sister and saw her fall, tripping over the protruding wood that served as a doorframe. He ran towards her, ducking any attacks thrown at him. As one of the guards advanced on Mei and raised his weapon Ling leaped at him, knocking him back, and slicing at him with his own sword.

The man fell back, and Ling spared him no other thought.

He turned to Mei and moved forward to help her only to beaten to it by a protective Al who lifted her into his arms and glanced up at Ling. The emperor understood the look the he gave him; they had to get out of this place.

He called out to Lan Fan, only to hear a panicked, "my Lord!" before he felt a throbbing, burning pain in his back, he felt the warmth of his own blood and stumbled forward, turning to see the man who had harmed Mei standing unsteadily with his dagger in hand. His other hand was pressed against the wound in his stomach that had been caused by Ling, and though he was clearly in a lot of pain, he wore a triumphant look. That is, until Lan Fan ran at him and cut him down, he fell to the ground, a surprised expression on his face. He wouldn't be getting up again.

Lan Fan ran towards him, "my Lord," she whispered, grabbing a hold of him and pulling him away, a guard sliced at her and she cut him back with a ferocity that surprised even Ling. Stumbling, Ling's vision began to turn hazy, he swayed on his feet until Lan Fan grabbed his hand and ran, dragging him with her, he turned to look at Al who was running just behind them and was relieved to see that he was okay, and that Mei was being held safely in his arms.

Now they just had to reach the horses alive.

* * *

Lan Fan didn't believe in things such as miracles, for a bodyguard to rely on something so undependable was simply ridiculous, however, even she had to admit faced with current situation that their escape had been nothing short of miraculous. By the time they had reached the horses, Ling had been leaning heavily on her, it was likely only a shallow wound, but Lan Fan knew that he wouldn't be able to handle too much more exertion.

"Al, you'll be riding with Mei," she told the other boy, who nodded as though it was an obvious thing, she helped Ling onto her horse, jumping up behind him, it might be a little slower, it would tire out the horses quicker, having two riders on each horse and it would be a shame to have to leave one of their horses behind, but there was nothing to be done about it.

At one point, when running to the horses, it had looked as though they weren't going to escape, Al had been nicked on the shoulder by a thrown dagger and Ling had been running more and more slowly, then Al stopped, placing Mei carefully on the ground he turned and clapped his hands together, pushing them to the ground, Lan Fan could only watch as the ground rose up to create a wall between the guards and them. It wouldn't stop the men for too long, but it would give them the needed advantage, allowing them to escape.

Which is, of course, what they wasted no time doing.

* * *

The ride back to the palace was arduous and tiring, they were forced to stop several times to bandage wounds and injuries and to rest, Mei and Ling became ill quickly for some reason, Al reported feeling faint and unwell occasionally and Lan Fan found herself feeling the same way also. It took them two days to get to the palace, Lan Fan knew that she would have to have some explanation as to where the emperor had been for the days he had been gone for, but at the moment, she was preoccupied with another worry, namely the possibility that the weapons they had been attacked with had been poisoned, a fear she was careful not to share, it would not help to cause even more concern.

However she found herself unable to wonder about it, the Shii clan typically didn't rely on such methods as poison to defeat their enemy, they were a proud clan, and to them, the use of such things was similar to cheating, something they would never abide by.

So why had those guards used poison on their blades?

By the time they arrived, Mei had fallen into a deep sleep, and despite their best efforts couldn't be roused; Ling seemed close behind. Neither Al nor Lan Fan had been largely affected by the poison, and the raven guard was grateful for that at least, she wasn't sure if they would have been able to make it back otherwise.

They were stopped at the gates, "move," she ordered, she needed to get Mei and Ling to one of the palace doctors as quickly as possible, the guard began to protest when, "don't worry, let them past," the two horses moved forward and Lan Fan looked up surprised to see the observant guard she had spoken to when she had first noticed the emperor's disappearance. He gave her a small smile and bowed, "ma'am."

* * *

Lan Fan sat next to Ling who lay sleeping in his bed,

in the next room over was Al with Mei, they had all been tended to, and Lan Fan had been reassured that both Mei and Ling would be fine. There was a movement to her left and Lan Fan turned towards the door; the soldier- the one who had guided them through the castle to the medicinal area, the one who had ordered the others to let them through into the palace- paused, hand on the handle, it was clear he had been about to leave.

He turned and bowed, "I had best return to my post ma'am," he explained, and Lan Fan nodded, "thank you…" she trailed off as she realised she didn't know his name, he seemed to realise the reason for her sudden smile as he smiled, "my name is Ru, ma'am, Ru Xiao."

* * *

**Of course I wasn't going to kill Ling ****_now_****, I mean, there's still like... three chapters left.**

**So... the perfect soldier is a recurring character in this, my, must be a coincidence, I'm clearly only using him because I couldn't be bothered to think up a new character. There's no way that he could be a key component in Ling and Lan Fan's relationship becoming a thing, I mean, it's not like he's going to hit on Lan Fan and get Ling jealous, causing a whole lot of interesting things to happen, not at all.**

**So yeah, three more chapters to clear stuff up, for example, why the guards killed Ono, I'm sure you're all wondering about that, and no one has actually become official yet so we better fix that, my my... so much to be done in just three chapters, i don't know how I did it.**

**(Here's a hint: the next chapter's called 'Al's Confession')**

**Al and Mei: Wait what!**


	8. Al's Confession

**I feel sick but because I'm such a lovely person I'm still uploading :D**

**Anyway... I think there was something I was planning on saying here but I don't remember**

**Ling: Okay then... should I be here? Aren't I asleep or something?**

**I think you might be, I don't even remember what happened in the last chapter... uh... maybe?**

**Lan Fan: Because Jessica literally sat here for five minutes trying to think of something to give me to say I'll just be doing the disclaimer again**

**Lan Fan: Jessica doesn't own FMAB nor any of the characters in this except for the OCs but who wants them**

**Yeah... I think my humour's gone missing...**

**Ling: Anyway... enjoy!**

**Humour where have you gooooooooone~**

* * *

**Chapter Eight: Al's Confession**

"Is everything okay?" Al looked up as Lan Fan came in and sat across the bed from him, his hand was tightly clasped around Mei's, but he acted as though he had forgotten he had taken a hold of it, as though it was the natural thing. Al smiled, "she's fine," he said softly, glancing at Mei before looking back at Lan Fan once more, "she's just sleeping right now," he laughed quietly, "she looks so sweet like this, you wouldn't believe how strong she can actually be… she's amazing," Lan Fan smiled, they sat together in silence for a few moments, but the atmosphere was calm and private, and Lan Fan had a feeling that she was intruding, "well, I'm glad everything's okay," she told him, standing finally.

"I'll be going back now Al," she informed the young alchemist, he didn't even look up, nodding his head and continuing to gaze at Mei.

Lan Fan smiled and left the room, she paused at the door leading into where the emperor was waiting, realising she could sense the chi of someone else's presences in there. She froze, there wasn't supposed to be anyone in there at the moment. Heart hammering she burst in, only to stop short when she saw who it was.

The elderly lady looked up from her seat beside the bed, "I'm sorry," she said, getting to her feet hurriedly, and bowing, "I didn't mean to the forsake my duties, however, I just had to make sure that the emperor was alright," Lan Fan sighed, sitting down on another seat across from her, the gardening lady who had informed her of her Lord's kidnapping.

Realising she hadn't thanked the woman she stood once more, "I would like to formally express my grati-" "don't be silly," the woman cut her off with a good-natured chuckle. "I was simply doing my duties as one of the Young Lord's subjects," she paused, "and there is no need to be so formal my dear, my name is Jie Xiao, you can just call me that."

"Are you from the Xiao clan?" Lan Fan asked, curious, the elderly lady nodded, "oh yes, but I've always worked here, my allegiance is to the emperor," Lan Fan smiled, "well, whether or not you told me of the emperor's danger out of loyalty, I am still grateful to you," she bowed, Jie smiled, nodding her head in acceptance of the thanks, "well, at any rate, I had best leave now, I have work to attend to," Lan Fan nodded, "of course, I didn't mean to distract you."

"Of course you didn't, it was a pleasure talking to you," with those words, the elderly gardener Jie Xiao walked out of the room.

* * *

Al understood how he felt about Mei now, and as he gazed down at her peaceful face he felt a swell of warmth and protectiveness in his chest, he felt _love_ when he looked at her, and he smiled at the fact that he could recognise that feeling.

Mei stirred slightly, before scrunching up her nose a little in a cute manner, Al smiled again at the act, then Mei opened her eyes and saw him. Al pulled back abruptly, blushing at being caught out staring at her, Mei struggled to sit up, "be careful, Mei, you were hurt remember," Al reprimanded lightly, leaning forward to help her, "I'm fine," the girl said impatiently.

Al nodded, "of course you are," he said, hesitantly withdrawing his hand, they sat awkwardly in silence for a few moments, "um… Mei?" said Xingese girl turned to look at him, "yes Alphonse?" Al hesitated, feeling the heat rise in his cheeks, when riding back to the palace, Al had made a promise with himself, seeing Mei hurt had almost _killed_ him, the entire ride on the way home, especially towards the end when she lost consciousness, holding her limp body upright, he had felt as though he should have been able to protect her. To protect from being hurt in such a manner.

Which in itself, he knew was a foolish thought, because Mei was usually more than capable of protecting herself.

But he hadn't been able to rid himself of this feeling, of the desire to protect the one he loved. Their escape made him realise something, it was important to always try things, to take risks, because if he didn't, he would only end up with regrets. He realised that he had loved Mei for some time, and that he should have told her ages ago, but he hadn't.

And he didn't want to miss out on the opportunity to be with her.

Even if she refused him, he had to try.

So he clenched his hands and looked at her resolutely, "Mei I think I am…" he paused before shaking his head, "I _am_ in love with you, and I have been for some time," Mei stared at him in shock and Al felt his confidence fail him. He looked away from her, "err… I just thought you should know, because, um… so there weren't… I mean, that is to say tha-" Al was cut off suddenly when Mei leaned over and hugged him tightly, "oh Alphonse," she cried, giggling, "this is wonderful, I'm so happy!" Al blushed before uncertainly hugging her back, "really?" Mei looked up at him and nodded, and Al smiled, "I'm… I'm so happy to hear that."

Without thinking, he bent down and gave her a chaste kiss on the lips then froze, realising what he had just done he blushed, Mei was equally red, and she opened her mouth to say something before smiling and instead tightened her grip on him and buried her face in her chest.

They sat like this for some minutes, both delighted that their love had been returned.

That is, until Mei looked up once more with a frown and sighed, instantly, Al felt his heart clench with worry, was she having second thoughts? Did she actually not see him that way?

"W-what's wrong, Mei?" he asked hesitantly, Mei shook her head, "nothing really, it's just… this means I'm going to have to have _Edward_ for a brother in-law," she made a face and Al smiled, silently berating himself for thinking that Mei would change her mind so quickly, glad that they could be together.

That is, until the implications of what she had just said sunk in.

* * *

Lan Fan sat gazing quietly at Ling as he rested, she was relieved that he was safe and that he was going to be fine now, despite her failure. But as she sat silently on her seat, she found herself plagued by a single thought, namely, something that had been said back at Ono's home, _'one would wonder why you are so intent on serving your Lord'_ she looked away, down at the floor, "there isn't really a specific reason," she whispered to herself, "it's what I was assigned to do, I have to work hard especially now that grandfather isn't around to help, and the emperor is refusing to find new people for his personal guard," she tried to sound assertive, but she knew that what she was saying – while true – wasn't exactly the whole truth.

_'You certainly show more loyalty than any normal servant,'_ she clenched her hands, _'could it be possible that you feeling go beyond that of servitude and responsibility?'_ she squeezed her eyes closed, this particular question was what wouldn't allow to forget it, she wanted to deny anything of the sort, but why was it so important to her then? Why would she feel the need to deny it so avidly if it was untrue? Unimportant? Empty accusations had never affected her before unless they were aimed at her Lord. So why now, was this particular one refusing to give her any peace?

She glanced over at Ling then away again, she realised with a start that she had always looked at him in the past, and though part of her mind argued that it was because she needed to ensure his safety, another part suggested timidly that maybe she looked at him, simply for the sake of looking at him. Because looking at him, being with him, seeing him smile, made her unbelievably happy.

Almost as soon as the thought invaded her mind she shook her head aggressively as though to try and stop it taking root, she knew that if her thoughts continued down that path she would end up being forced to admit something she desperately didn't want to.

But her mind- and her heart- wouldn't leave her alone, and she found herself glancing at the young man lying, resting in the bed only a few metres away from her, and she found herself recognising the desperately happy and nervous flutters she felt in her chest and she was aware of things she hadn't noticed before and she couldn't believe she hadn't noticed it.

"Lan Fan?"

Her eyes returned once more to the bed where her Lord lay sleepily gazing at her, she stood quickly, attempting to push the thoughts back to her mind she bowed, kneeling down on one knee, "my Lord," she said, "what's wrong?" she looked up with surprise, "my Lord?" he frowned, any displeasure he might have felt softened by his obvious exhaustion, "when I woke just now you were gazing off into space, you had a troubled expression on your face and you seemed to be thinking deeply," he paused, "if it is about what happened at the home of the Shii clan, I want you to know that I do not hold you accountable in the least, we underestimated them, but you did your best, and we managed to get away in the end," he gave a reassuring smile, "I don't think we would have been able to do that if it hadn't been for you, you did everything required of you and more," Lan Fan glanced up at him and saw that he was still smiling gently, sleepily; she flushed and looked down once more, wishing avidly that she had her mask right now, she forced herself to nod, but didn't say anything. She felt her heart beating rapidly in her chest, and she looked up to him once more to see that he had fallen asleep once again, breathing lightly, she knew that when he woke again, he would grin and joke about being absolutely starving, he would make light of what had happened with Ono, and he would tease he endlessly about inconsequential things, and she would blush and get flustered and he would laugh that cheerful laugh of his that never failed to warm her.

There would only be one difference.

She would do her best to protect him, and he would do his best to make her blush, but when she looks at him and experiences that familiar sudden urge to kiss his forehead or his lips, she wouldn't pause and wonder where that thought came from before pushing it to the back of her mind with the stubbornness only found in those who didn't wish to accept something.

_'Could it be possible that you feeling go beyond that of servitude and responsibility?'_ she sighed and leaned against a wall, it was likely that the man hadn't even meant anything by that, that he had simply said it to unnerve her and make her question herself- not that it didn't work- but now she found herself nodding slightly in answer to his question. The emperor's brief moments of alertness, the brief conversation that barely even qualified as a conversation, had been enough for her to realise; she had been in love with him and his goofy smile ever since they had first met.

And she was ashamed.

A bodyguard isn't supposed to fall in love with their master, they display the utmost loyalty and devotion, but they don't let emotions get in the way, the situation with Ono had simply be one of many examples, she hadn't thought it through, and she had nearly gotten the one she was supposed to keep safe killed.

It was as though she had failed him.

And thinking on this, she felt she could never tell him of her feelings, what right did she have to ask any such thing from him? He was emperor and he had his duties, she was his bodyguard, and she had her own. And that was how it was.

The room was suddenly stifling, she couldn't bear to stay so close to him anymore, and she left, telling herself she would go for a walk, then come back, she _wouldn't_ let her emotions compromise the emperor again.

So she walked out of the room and along the hallways, one of the large windows that overlooked the gardens showed the darkness settling in and she stopped for a moment, realising that her wanderings had brought her to the throne room for some obscure reason. She glanced at the gardens once more and thought of the gardener Jie Xiao, she remembered how the uniforms on the guards at the Shii home had seemed out of place, how they had been the right colour, but hadn't seemed to be the right pattern.

An idea, barely tangible began to form in her mind, as she thought about it all; until she had arrived at Ono's home, they hadn't attempted to force the emperor into doing anything, they had waited till she had arrived, knowing that he would then do as asked. Jie Xiao. The poison on the weapons, an uncommon occurrence for those of the Shii clan; poison was a favourite of the Xiao clan. There were two clans that held the colours of maroon and gold. The patterns on the uniforms guards that seemed wrong for the Shii clan and yet familiar; the men that would have needed an inside person to enter the castle. The one who told her of the emperor's kidnapping, to ensure that she would leave immediately. And of course Ono's surprise killing.

As each thought entered her mind, her suspicion and dread thickened, she turned on her heel to return to Ling, fearing dreadfully for him before sensing something that made her pause. She turned to the throne room once more, _someone was inside_.

As she edged closer to the doors, disguising her chi, she recognised the intruder's chi and sighed at the confirmation of her suspicions.

Jie Xiao.

* * *

**I try to be funny then I just fail at it... :T**

**I'm also no good at suspense and stuff... idk... I'm lazy I guess?**

**Wait... where is Al and Mei**

**Ling: They're together now so they don't need you :D**

**Wow...**

**You... rude**

**...**

**...**

**Let's kill someone in the next chapter then-**

**I mean what**


	9. Attacks, Betrayal And Poison

**It's funny because I ruin every story I write and I'm sooo bad at updating regularly and yet there are still people who are actually reading this like I'm sorry are you lost?**

**Ling's asleep I think**

**And Lan Fan's about like... get into a million of a fights**

**Lan Fan: What**

**There's more than just one bad guy :P**

**But anyway, I was looking at the ending for this the other and I just cried and at how badly I ended it like, that's not an ending, I'm pretty sure it doesn't classify as an ending.**

**I think that my weak points in writing is endings and happy things**

**So... yeah**

**Anyway don't mind me, I'm just blabbing, I almost forgot to upload this chapter today, oops.**

**I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist etc. etc.**

**Enjoy**

* * *

**Chapter Nine: Attacks, Betrayal And Poison**

Lan Fan slipped silently inside of the throne room, she hid behind a column as she saw Jie standing behind the throne, the bodyguard didn't need to see what she was doing, she already knew, and when the elderly lady stepped away from the throne at last, Lan Fan could see the red stone in her hand that confirmed her suspicions. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a kunai, throwing it without delay at the woman. There was a loud curse as the kunai hit her hand, and Lan Fan watched as Jie dropped the stone in favour of clutching her wound and trying to stop the bleeding.

She whipped her head around just as Lan Fan strode out from behind the pillow, another kunai at hand, tensed for a fight. Jie smiled a sickly sweet smile, "oh dear," she said with mock disappointment, "throwing weapons at defenceless elderly people, what would your grandfather think?" Lan Fan started at the mention of Fuu and Jie launched herself at the bodyguard, weapons already clutched in each hand.

* * *

Ru walked down the corridors of the palace, his shift had just ended but he still possessed two of his daggers, one strapped to his waist, the other onto his arm, under the sleeve where it would not be seen, but could be drawn easily.

He was headed to Ling's room, where the young emperor would be resting, _'I wonder if that bodyguard of his is there?'_ he mused silently, a small smirk appeared on the man's face as he, Ru Xiao, walked on down the hallways.

* * *

Lan Fan leapt backwards, dodging a swipe from the other woman, she had already realised that she had a fair chance of winning this fight. The Xiao clan tended to have more of a cloak and dagger approach, though their guards were trained in different kinds of martial arts, they didn't receive such a vigorous training as other clans. Despite this, Lan Fan was aware that she still needed to treat Jie with caution; it was likely that her weapons were covered with poison, just like the guards' back at Ono's home.

She focused on dodging the quick and lethal slashes that were sent her way, the fighting was something she knew, something she was familiar with. Lan Fan's mind entered a stated of calm as she focused entirely on surviving, on not losing, and on not failing her master. There was no guilt, no shame over feelings she shouldn't be experiencing, no horror or sadness at the transformation of the sweet, helpful, worrisome gardening lady to this awful snarling savage. She settled into the routine of fighting, dealing with an enemy swiftly and mercilessly, as a bodyguard should.

In moments the fight was over, with Lan Fan standing over a now cowering Jie, she made no move to follow the woman as she backed away a little, clutching her injured hand, one eye squinted shut, "you wouldn't kill a defenceless old lady would you?" she wheedled, searching Lan Fan's face for sympathy or compassion.

"I have no intention of killing you," the raven told her quietly, and it was true, she hated this woman, absolutely despised her for what she had done, betraying her emperor, assisting in his kidnapping, her and her clan, she hated them all, because they tried to hurt the person who was precious to her.

But that didn't mean she would kill Jie.

Such a thing would be pointless, the woman had already lost, and she had recognised that fact, killing in vengeance was something she could never approve of, and she knew the emperor wouldn't either.

So she strode forward, ignoring the woman who backed away with a defiant snarl, moving towards the stone glinting blood-red in the light, she picked it up, feeling a moment's sorrow for those lives who had been used to create it. At the sound of running feet she pocketed the stone quickly, a new place would need to be found for its safe-keeping, but for now, she would have to hold onto it, until she could hand to the young Lord.

She turned towards the doors as they opened, an officer and several guards rushing in, before seeing her and saluting, "is everything alright, ma'am?" the man in front asked, "a servant heard the sounds of fighting and came to get us," Lan Fan tilted her head in acknowledgement of the man's words, before motioning to Jie, the men realised her signal and two of them strode forward and grasped the shoulders of the woman firmly, she glared at them, but they had received as much training as she-if not more- she would not be able to escape, "take her somewhere secure," she told them, and they nodded, turning and dragging the woman away.

* * *

Ling opened one eye sleepily, glancing around the room only to see that Lan Fan wasn't present, he sighed, hoping that whatever had been bothering the woman had been dealt with. Though part of him had always known it, he had cared about Lan Fan in a way that went beyond that of a bodyguard, beyond even that of a friend; he wasn't sure how he felt about that.

There wasn't any way for them to be together at any rate, it wasn't his status that would prevent it, if that was it, then he would do anything he could for them to be together, he wouldn't let something like that stop him. But even if Lan Fan returned his feelings, he didn't think she would allow a relationship between the two of them, she would never admit to her feelings and refuse to allow their relationship to become anything other than professional.

He sighed once again, turning over onto his side, he acknowledged that this was why he had always teased her, to try and coax her into a reaction, and it was then, lying in his bed, mind foggy from sleep and the after-effects of the poison, that he admitted quietly to himself that he had never wanted to just be friends with her, though in the past, he had always thought that was what he was trying to do, convince her to be less formal around him, to treat him as an equal. But it hadn't been just that, he had loved teasing her, seeing her reactions, the way she'd blush and fluster.

Tricking her into dropping her guard, even for a moment, was always worth it.

A small smile curved his lips and his eyes slid closed once more, _'if it stays like that, it won't be terrible,_' he thought, mind beginning to drift, _'it's not like I can't be with her anymore at least,' _and with that thought, his mind fell into the blissful unawareness of dreams.

* * *

Lan Fan frowned, something was niggling at the back of her mind, something she couldn't quite think of, but she knew it was important; there was one last thing she was missing. She bit her lip, "the intruder has been secured, ma'am," Lan Fan looked up at the officer who stood to attention in front of her, she nodded distractedly and he turned and walked off.

She watched him go with a small frown on her face, the guard- Ru- came to mind, and she froze as she realised just what it was that had been bothering her, _'my name's Ru, ma'am, Ru Xiao.'_

* * *

Al looked up from his book at the sound of heavy footsteps outside the door, frowning, he stood up and walked over to it, poking his head out only to see the door to Ling's room closing, _'someone must have gone to visit him'_ he mused silently.

"What is it, Al?" he turned back to Mei who was looking at him with a sleepy, pleased smile, he shook his head, "nothing," he said, before returning to the bedside, Mei nodded, leaning back into her pillows again and closing her eyes peacefully.

"Al?" she said softly, the alchemist tilted his head to one side, "yeah Mei?" another smile, and a tired yawn, before, "I'm really glad I met you." Al flushed, looking down at his feet before nodding.

"I'm really glad I met you too Mei."

* * *

Lan Fan was running, speeding down the hallways towards the emperor's room, after what had happened with Jie, it was too much of a coincidence.

She turned the corner and reached the hallway where her Lord was currently resting, _'please be okay, Ling.'_

* * *

Ru looked down at the sleeping emperor for a moment, he couldn't help but feel he was only just a boy, barely fit for running a country, he smirked, he was doing his home a favour, in a few years, the young 'emperor' would have undoubtedly shown his true colours to be an incompetent fool with no idea of what he was doing.

He raised his dagger.

* * *

Lan Fan threw open the door, mind processing instantaneously what the situation was; Ru was hovering over Ling, weapon raised and ready to kill, it was possibly one of the worse situations possible. And some part of her was saddened to think of the double betrayal.

But Ling was still alive.

And she wouldn't let that fact change.

Without a moment's hesitation she launched herself at Ru, tackling him to the floor, he shouted and Lan Fan struggled to hold him down when he jerked suddenly and swiped at her, causing her to let go to fall backwards, flinching at the sharp pain on her cheek as the dagger parted her skin.

He got to his feet, glaring at Lan Fan, when, "terribly sorry but knives are such dangerous things to be waving around like that," Ru spun around as he felt his weapon yanked from his hand. Behind him stood Ling, with a calm expression on his face, a dagger in his hand, and an icy smile that curled his lips.

Lan Fan got to her feet, hearing the sound of footsteps and the door behind her opening, she turned to Al and Mei standing in the doorway, panicked and worried expressions on their faces.

With a shout, Ru took charged forward, taking out another dagger from somewhere and throwing it at the door, "look out," Lan Fan cried, Al grabbed Mei and dodged out of the way, holding her protectively; while they were distracted, Ru slipped out of the doorway and ran down the hallway.

Lan Fan cursed, "he's going to escape," she muttered, running after him.

* * *

Ling frowned, "she shouldn't just go charging off like that," he muttered, steeping forward to go after, "maybe you shouldn't," Ling paused at Al's voice, "you haven't fully recovered, I'll go after her," the young alchemist volunteered.

Ling shook his head, "thank you Al, but you can stay with Mei, this is something I have to do."

With those words he strode off down the hallway, a determined expression on his face.

_'No more relying on Lan Fan for everything, I need to start protecting her as well.'_

* * *

Lan Fan ran, trying to find Ru who had so far managed to evade her; her blood pumped, and her breathing came in short gasps, if she hadn't already been distracted, she might have paused to wonder at this, she might have wondered why she was feeling feverish, why she was beginning to feel weak.

But she was focused on subduing the threat to the emperor, and so, she did not notice, nor pay any heed to these things.

If she had, she might have paused to wonder about the Xiao clan's favourite type of weapon, she might have paused to consider the fact that poison can be in varying potency, and that some come into effect sooner than others.

She might have stopped to consider this.

But she did not.

And as her vision started to blacken she realised what had happened, and as her knees started to bend she understood that Ru would escape, and as she fell to the ground, she could only apologise, _'I have failed you again, Ling.'_

* * *

**It's funny because this was going to be like... three chapters, but because I can't write action scenes it wasn't.**

**Also, this whole story wasn't meant to have this many chapters in general idek where half of them came from, how did this happen.**

**Oh well.**

**Next chapter's the last chapter.**

**Uh... review, lemme know what you think and stuff, I'd appreciate it.**

**Also, I've actually been kinda wondering, are my characters... in character? I mean, idk, do you guys think that they're kind of acting like how they should act, because I've been wondering if my writing is somewhat OOC (or really OOC) so yeah**


	10. The End?

**This is it guys, the last chapter, I shall miss you all, unless you've been reading some of my other stories, in which case it isn't so much a case of missing you as you leave but more like seeing you later, but this is also the internet so its more like reading, but I suppose you see the reviews and stuff and so it _is_ see you guys later and wow that sentence didn't just go down hill, it fell at a ninety degree angel and crashed into the hard, rocky terrain below causing a fiery explosion with piece flying everywhere.**

**Okay, I'm done.**

**I just needed to get that out of my system.**

**Um... I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist.**

**Enjoy**

* * *

**Chapter Ten: The End?**

Ling stretched, the poison had fully left his system a few days ago without any major issues, Mei was okay as well, spending an _awful_ lot of time with a certain alchemist, Ling would be lying if he said he had been surprised when he heard about the two and their... current _romantic_ status.

He walked down the hallway, Ru had escaped, they had some people out looking for him, notices had been put up, but so far they had nothing. As for Jie, she had killed herself the day after she had been put in her cell, apparently, she had told one of the guards just before that she would never tell them anything. What that anything was, Ling had no idea.

He thought it was fairly obvious what had happened.

The Xiao clan had made an 'alliance' with the Shii clan, promising Ono that he could rule, of course, he wouldn't question it, he would have been led to believe that the Xiao clan needed his help, that they'd let him emperor and as a result, their clan would be favoured.

Of course, their plan wasn't as simple as that.

They used Ono to find out where the Philosopher's Stone was, then they would let him kill the current emperor. They would have Ono killed then, his usefulness gone, and they would send their spy in to retrieve the stone.

When Ono failed to end Ling's life, he was killed by one of the guards they had supplied the man in the name of 'assisting an ally'. The plan would have had to be changed, one of their spies would have to take on the task of killing the current emperor, it put them and the secret of their involvement in the plan at risk, but they seemed to have decided it was worth the risk.

They were wrong.

Ling sighed, running his hand along the wall idly as he turned a corner, none of this changed the current facts, Ru was missing, Jie was dead, the Xiao clan more treacherous than he believed, and Lan Fan...

He opened the door, entering the room and turning to the patient sitting up in the bed, he stood for a moment, gazing at her, silently willing to meet his eyes, but her gaze remained downcast and he sighed.

Walking over, he seated himself next to her bed, he played with his fingers idly and they sat in awkward silence until finally, he sighed once more, he had something he had to tell her, and he knew she wasn't going to take it well, but it was necessary, to keep her safe.

"Lan Fan..."

* * *

Al sighed, sitting next to Mei pulling grass from the ground worriedly, "so why can't we go say hello to Lan Fan now that she's waken up at last?" he asked, sticking out his bottom lip slightly in an annoyed pout. They were currently sitting outside in the garden, a suggestion made by Mei, and while Al liked being outside perfectly well, he did want to make sure his friend was okay.

Mei shook her head, "I _told_ you Alphonse," she said, a hint of impatience in her voice, "I saw Ling heading that way," the alchemist shook his head, conveying his confusion and Mei sighed, smiling slightly at Al's ignorance, "let's just say that they need a chance to talk about certain... things," Al shook his head in a slightly bemused fashion before wrapping his arms around her in a content manner.

Mei giggled, leaning up to plant a kiss on his brow, then another on his lips, red tinging her cheeks slightly, before wrapping her arms around him and closing her eyes with a smile.

"We'll go talk to Lan Fan later, when they're done," she told him softly, Al hummed in response, he knew that Lan Fan and Ling had _something_ there, and judging by what Mei was saying... they had romantic feelings for each other?

He shook his head, smiling slightly, _'well, I hope that if that's the case, they'll be able to work it out then.'_

* * *

"You... _what_?" Lan Fan stared at Ling in shock, her surprise at his words causing her to forget her guilt over her previous failures over the past few weeks. This time it was Ling's turn to avoid her gaze, looking away, down to the ground, "I'm relieving you of your services," he repeated, hands clasped together.

Lan Fan couldn't believe what she was hearing, yes, she hadn't necessarily done a good job recently, but the Ling she knew would never be the type to fire someone for that, if anything, she was expecting some teasing jabs about the way she had failed to protect him. She wondered for a moment if this was another one of them, but Ling's posture, the way his shoulders were slumped forward in dejection, it was too honest and horribly true.

"I know I did a less than admirable job dealing with the Xiao clan incident," she began, wincing slightly at her words, "but..." she trailed off, what was she going to say? It couldn't be helped? She wasn't at fault? She had no right to try and defend herself, because of her and her foolish emotions and rash thinking, she had nearly gotten Ling killed multiple times, if it hadn't been for Al and Mei then they'd both be dead now. In all honesty, the right thing to do would be to accept the judgement and leave, let someone more competent take care of him, someone who could actually do their job.

But something inside her just couldn't let that happen.

"But I would appreciate another chance," she said, reaching forward and hesitantly grasping his sleeve, Ling had found her unconscious when she had chased after Ru. He had brought her back to the doctors immediately and they had tended to her, because of this, she was stabilized and ended up being fine, but currently, her strength was somewhat weak, and she knew that if he so desired, Ling could brush her hand off easily, but he didn't.

And for that Lan Fan was grateful.

"I know that I have no right to ask for this, I failed you terribly, but I-" she was cut off when Ling looked up at her, "I don't believe that you failed me," he said softly, his hand rose to covers hers for a moment before sighing and pulling it from his sleeve and placing it back on the bed.

But Lan Fan wouldn't be deterred, and she grabbed hold of him, hands clutching his tightly, ignoring the way it felt to be so close to him, the way it made her heart pound in her chest, "then why?" she insisted, she couldn't leave this be, she didn't want him to walk out of her life after all this time, she wanted to be able to protect him.

She wanted to be able to be with him.

* * *

Mei sighed, scrunching up her nose in a worried manner, "what's wrong?" she turned towards Al, seeing the concerned look on his face she smiled and shook her head, "nothing," she murmured, leaning in slightly to snuggle against him, inwardly squealing at the fact that they actually were together, still not able to believe it.

She felt Al's gentle smile and she calmed slightly, in truth, she was concerned about was going to happen to Ling and Lan Fan, she knew that her stupid older brother had been feeling guilty for Lan Fan nearly dying from the poisoning. And she knew that he wouldn't want Lan Fan to be hurt anymore, so being him, he'd probably something dumb in an attempt to keep her safe.

Mei just hoped that Lan Fan could forget about duty and loyalty and status long enough to tell Ling how she was really feeling.

If that happened, Mei was sure that everything else would sort itself out.

* * *

"You hate the idea that I was hurt... because of you?" Lan Fan frowned, "that's my job," she said, "and I want to be able to... it's my _job_ to protect you," she blushed slightly at her words, but forced herself to meet his eyes.

She saw the sadness in his gaze, the worry, the guilt and... something else, something warm and affectionate that made her heart flutter.

He smiled slightly before shaking his head, before Lan Fan knew what was happening, he had stood and kissed her gently on the forehead, "I don't want it to be your job," he said softly, "all these years you've been in my shadow, protecting me, you never got a chance to do what you wanted, to find someone to love, I want... I want you to be happy, Lan Fan," with those words he stood and turned to go, only to find himself stopped by arms wrapping around him from behind, "then let me stay with you."

His eyes widened, she hadn't really said that... had she?

"Lan... Fan?" surely she wasn't saying what he thought she was?

"I have... I have found someone to love, and I want to be with that someone, and protect them," Ling turned slowly, looking to see Lan Fan's downcast eyes, "will you please let me protect the one I love, my Lord?" Ling's mouth felt dry, his blood pumped in his ears as he crouched down, cupping her face and turning her to look at him, "and who is this person you love? Who is this person you want to protect?" He saw Lan Fan's blush deepen, she glanced away, embarrassment clearly written on her features, he knew she didn't want to say it aloud, but he had to hear it.

"Who is this person, Lan Fan?" the raven girl sighed before reaching up and placing her hand on the hand that held her face, "it's you, of course," she said softly, and Ling leant in and pressed his lips to hers, sliding his arms around her to hold her to him in a tight hug, and when he pulled away he rested his forehead on hers and smiled softly.

"When you say something like that, how can I refuse you?" he asked, a laugh evident in his voice, "you can on one condition," he told her, she looked at him, confused and he kissed her cheek gently, "you have to let _me_ protect the one _I_ love also," she blushed, flustering a little at this, before smiling slightly and nodding, and Ling thought he had never seen someone so beautiful.

As they sat there together, holding each other close, Ling's heart felt warm and his smile widened, he knew Lan Fan would still take protecting him as a serious duty, and in many ways, the ways they interacted wouldn't change, she would be determined to 'do her job' still and nothing he could say would change that.

But this time he would return the favour.

She wouldn't the emperor's bodyguard.

She would be his protector.

And he would be hers.

* * *

**There you go.**

**Remember how I said my weakpoints where happy stories and endings?**

**Well it's happy, so let's ignore the fact that it's a bad ending in favour of how I tackled one of my issues in writing.**

**It's just so much easier to kill all the characters off at the end of a story :T**

**Oh well... there you go, pointless fluff and an opening for a sequel if I had planned one.**

**Unfortunately, I didn't, and I'm not eager to do a PKH where I think up another whole plot line just because I got reviews asking me to.**

**I suppose, if I suddenly got inspiration, I might decide to do a sequel, but I imagine most of you guys would just prefer it if I left it as it is?**

**So yeah.**

**Anyway, let me know what you thought and... were any of my characters OOC?**

**Did I do an okay job? Or was it terrible?**

**I wanna know so, if you have the time to just write out a short review even, I'd appreciate it :D**


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